Heaven's Lament
by SoleAccord
Summary: What if Sakura's romantic pursuit of Sasuke after the 4th Great Shinobi War was not by choice, but duty? Having to destroy one of the strongest bonds she's ever known, one conversation among friends had changed everything for her. An old flame of affection begins to strengthen, and the ability to endure past decisions begins to weaken. (( NaruSaku drama/development/slow romance. ))
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - Originally posted on AO3. Still getting used to the way things work here, so forgive me for any odd mistakes while struggling to upload. As the summary would hint, this is a NaruSaku-centered story. If you do not approve of it, this may not be the story for you. As for everyone else, hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the setting or characters.**

"_You wanted to see me, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura Haruno stepped outside to greet her teacher, Kakashi Hatake, in front of Konoha's hospital. Being informed by a nurse that he wanted to speak with her had not brought much cause for alarm, but to greet him with his back turned felt strange and somewhat discomforting._

_It had been three days since the war had come to a decisive end. Against all odds Team 7 had managed to overcome adversity, and for the first time in so long they were managing to smile in the presence of one another. Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha both were tucked in beds just a few feet apart from each other and were meant to be resting, but Naruto's stamina was unrelenting. A couple hard smacks to the head had gotten him to lay back down, but time and time again he had sat back up. At first she believed it was just in his nature to disobey the orders of someone more than qualified to oversee his recovery. Instead she began to consider another possibility. The days of Team Seven were minimal, and the best times they had together were often her disapproving scowl at something Naruto said or did while Sasuke handled his idiocy with the abrasive responses he always seemed to have lined up in his head. Unlike before though, they were all managing to smile about the past they shared and looked to a better future together._

_Kakashi had been busy since they had returned to the village. Sakura had discovered that not only was he intending to become Hokage and help pave the way for Naruto's rise to the role, but Lady Tsunade had no issue stepping down. As Sakura and her teammates laughed and reminisced with one another, Tsunade had assured her that she could manage to create prosthetic arms without her assistance. Sakura remembered how much she protested, and Lady Tsunade's only request for her was to enjoy herself after the harsh experiences she faced during war. To laugh with Team 7 again and to be genuinely happy was something Tsunade wanted for her, and when it was put that way there was no more use arguing. With a thanks and a hug between master and student, Sakura left Lady Tsunade to handle it, but not before making her promise to reach out if she needed help._

_It went without saying that Sakura Haruno was, for the first time in quite a while, happy with the state of the world and everyone in it._

_"Sakura," Kakashi spoke up, turning around to face her, "How are you?" His attire hadn't changed much. All that was really different was that he had both eyes on him, and no need for his forehead protector to shield one. The biggest difference wasn't his new eye, but his attitude._

_Sakura could determine almost immediately that Kakashi was troubled by something. Ever since Naruto managed to restore his eye, reading her teacher had never been easier. His hands were tucked in his pockets in a typical Kakashi fashion, but the way his head hung slightly was telling her a different story. Ever since they had gotten back and Kakashi had voiced his interest in becoming Hokage to the council, they had seen little of him in the last few days. Something had happened, and it was enough for the illusion of things being okay to be completely broken. The Copy Ninja was hiding something from her._

_"I'm doing well, so are Naruto and Sasuke-kun. We've missed you, you know." Sakura approached him, stopping directly in front of Kakashi with a comfortable arms-length between them. "Naruto suggested we try another bell exercise together now that Sasuke-kun's back. He really wants us to work together again, this time without the fate of the world on our shoulders."_

_Kakashi's expression softened, much to Sakura's relief. Remembering them as Team 7 often brought pleasant emotions among everyone, and Kakashi was no different from them. The softened expression returned to one that was bordering on crestfallen._

_"Kakashi-sensei, what's the matter? I was hoping one of these days you'd just show up outside our window with a book in hand, but even I can tell that you're not your usual self." Sakura pointed out, concerned for Kakashi's state of mind. With so much accomplished and the world saved, it looked as though Kakashi's spirits seemed to worsen after the war. "Could it be about Obito?"_

_Kakashi held up a hand and shook his head, not intending for Sakura to turn this into a guessing game. It was true, something was on his mind and it was something terrible for not just him, but Team 7 as well. "I'd like you to go on a short walk with me, if that's okay with you?"_

_"Uh, yeah, no problem. Let me just run inside and—"_

_"It won't take long, Sakura. You'll be right back." Kakashi reassured her, leaving Sakura to nod in understanding. However uncertain she might be about his behavior, Sakura trusted that whatever he brought her out here to discuss was of the utmost importance. Following Kakashi's lead, the pair of them began a silent and short journey through Konoha. After several minutes of silence had passed, Kakashi had stopped just beneath the Hokage Monument, looking off towards the space where his face was meant to be placed. The vote was unanimous; Kakashi was qualified for the position, and even had the blessing of Tsunade to assume it. Sakura had expected him to be a little excited about it, but everything about Kakashi's attitude suggested he lost in the running somehow._

_"Sensei …?" Sakura quietly muttered, hoping he'd start explaining. She hoped that Naruto and Sasuke both weren't having too much fun without her, and she'd like to get back to them and enjoy their time together once again._

_"Right," Kakashi glanced at Sakura just to his left before turning his body around entirely to face her, "I have a mission for you. It's completely off the record, and only a certain handful of people are to know about this. Out of a very short list of kunoichi, you were ultimately decided as the best choice."_

_Sakura's first instinct was to be flattered – being chosen for an assignment like this sounded pretty important, and she couldn't help but smile at this reveal. "That's all you wanted to tell me? Kakashi-sensei, you have no idea how worried you were making me." She was fit for anything Kakashi could possibly have in store for her, and drove her right fist into her left hand to prove how eager she was. "I can handle anything you send my way. What's the assignment?"_

_Her confidence did no favors for her. Kakashi only seemed to be more withdrawn upon hearing it, and Sakura's shoulders sank just as her expression did. The body language was doing much of the talking and it was becoming clear that this mission wasn't one to be thrilled about. It couldn't have been as dangerous as what they all faced together merely days ago. Did he doubt her abilities, even after everything she had done?_

_"Sensei," Sakura's voice grew tense and impatient, "I'm positive can handle it. If you're concerned that it's too soon for me to get back out there, then I promise you—"  
_

_"Sasuke Uchiha," Kakashi said quietly the name they both knew all too well, "Sasuke Uchiha is the subject, and keeping him affiliated with the Leaf Village is the mission."_

* * *

"Did you pack your toothbrush?"

"Yes."

"Pajamas?"

"Yes, Mama."

"Good, and what about your—"

"My books are packed, too. I can pack my own bag properly, Mama." Sarada Uchiha was quick to explain to her mother, walking side by side to her grandparents' house. It was bad enough that her day at the academy was filled with disappointment, but to have her own mother question her ability to do something as simple as prepare a bag for a weekend with grandma and grandpa was too tedious for her to bear. So much worrying for so little; it was hard to believe that her mother was a legendary kunoichi with how much she worried about things like this. "I'm not going to keep losing to Shikadai either, he keeps completing the tests faster than I do," Admitting inferiority was never easy for the daughter of Sasuke Uchiha, so she was quick to add: "But not by much!"

Sakura Haruno, hero of the 4th Great Ninja War and successor of the legendary medical kunoichi Princess Tsunade, looked down at her daughter with pride. Having become a full-time mother as well as becoming both the head of medical staff at the hospital and the Medic Corps subdivision, it went without saying that her days of being carefree were long behind her. People from around the Land of Fire and beyond had come to meet with her and learn the art of medicine and medical ninjutsu. Hosting lectures and offering lessons to those willing was a part of her duty now, and with the knowledge she had it was only right that she pass it on to those willing to learn it, just as Tsunade had. The pressure of running it had paled in comparison to motherhood, and while Sarada was a genius in her class, she did have a problem with socializing.

Her father could be thanked for that.

"It sounds like you have a rival. His dad was a genius too, but he had a problem with applying himself. They're quite alike." Sakura mused at the thought, "And he's not the only one that didn't fall too far from the tree. Are you and Bolt still-"

"Tch!" Sarada scoffed at the mention of Bolt Uzumaki, the son of Naruto Uzumaki: Jinchuuriki, Hero of the 4th Great Ninja War, and her mother's old teammate.

"I know he might be a little reckless sweetheart, but I'm sure if you two talked to one another you might find things you have in common." Sakura gently attempted to persuade her daughter. Forming friendships was difficult for her daughter, and in spite of her intelligence she never really mentioned any friends. As long as she had good scores and a perfect attendance, Sarada was always content with herself.

"We only have one thing in common, and it's not like I want to talk about it with someone like him." Sarada's tone didn't reflect amusement, and it never really had when it came to Bolt's antics.

"Okay, okay, let's forget I brought it up for now. You're going to be good for your grandma and grandpa, right?" Sakura asked as they began to approach the home she had grew up in. Mebuki and Kizashi Haruno didn't find it necessary to move; the home was in a nice location and it wasn't like they were too far from their precious granddaughter.

"Yes, I'm always good, you don't need to worry so much." Sarada turned to her mother for one last parting hug, embracing her quietly. Sakura returned it without hesitation and rubbed her daughters back tenderly.

"A mother can't help but worry about her child. I'll come back on Sunday, give your grandmother and grandfather a hug for me."

"You can just come in yourself, can't you?"

"I would, but I'm already running a little late. Have fun." Truth be told, the last thing Sakura wanted to hear was her mother asking question after question about Sarada's health and well-being. Was Sarada eating healthy? Was she in bed promptly before 9 o' clock? These were all questions Sakura could have gone without. As Sarada turned to head up the stairway leading to her grandparent's house, she suddenly froze and looked over her shoulder to meet Sakura's eyes with her own.

"Will Papa be back soon?" The young Uchiha asked with hope, but a tone so low it was as if she already knew the answer: She didn't know. Sarada turned back around and continued to ascend up the stairs, stopping at the front door and knocking three times before stepping inside to announce her arrival to her eagerly awaiting grandparents.

Turning around and heading for her next destination, Sakura quietly pondered Sasuke's whereabouts. His frequent journeys had taken its toll on her. She didn't blame him for the discomfort he felt remaining in the village after what had been done to his clan. All she had asked of him, time and time again, was to bear it for Sarada's sake. When he did manage to stay for more than a couple weeks at a time, he was always close to Sarada and listened intently to her as she bragged about her test scores and how much attention she was getting from her teacher. Shino Aburame had expressed how intelligent Sarada was and how she was promptly in her seat each morning. Maintaining the responsibilities she did took some serious energy, but as long as her daughter was performing well she could handle the long hours with a smile.

The stress of work aside, a weekend like this, without Sarada's presence, would normally mean a weekend she and her husband could share together. She wanted things to become normal for them, even knowing that after what Sasuke had been through it was impossible. Time may have passed, but the scars could never fully heal. It wasn't in her power to cure what was a part of him now. She had learned to endure the loneliness she felt at times without her husband home, Sarada was being forced to do the same as her father's daughter.

Her destination wasn't far. Reaching the restaurant in a few short minutes, Sakura was nearly overwhelmed by the mouth-watering scent of barbecued meat all around her. Her eyes scanned the restaurant, and the waving of a familiar hand had attracted her before the combination of blonde and brown hair did.

"Sakura, over here!" Ino Yamanaka waved her over, already seated beside TenTen. The two kunoichi had been seated in a booth together comfortably, and already meat was grilled in front of them. Sakura smiled and took a deep breath before making an approach to her long-time friends. Sarada was with her grandparents and excelling in school. Sasuke was out traveling again and could be on his way home as she stood. She'd be nothing but positive today, especially when she rarely had time to spend with her friends these days.

"Ino, TenTen, hey!" Sakura greeted the two, moving to the far end of the restaurant and taking a seat across from them. With good company and a good meal, she believed there'd be no problem in making this a relaxing experience. They never had time to get together anymore. "Sorry I'm a little late, I was dropping Sarada off. How have things been with you two? It feels like it's been forever since we've had time to sit down and talk."

"Because it _has_ been forever, at least a couple months, but who's keeping track?" Ino shrugged her shoulders, smiling. "Do you know how hard it is to find a schedule that can work for us?"

"I'd imagine pretty hard considering how much overtime I put in, and with TenTen's shop—" Sakura's gaze moved to the weapon specialist, noticing her expression changed from one of genuine happiness to one of comical depression. "Err, I …guess things still haven't been going so great?"

"About as well as you'd expect. Peace is nice and all, but it's hard to make a living selling ninja tools when there's less need for ninja. I'm barely making ends meet here." TenTen explained with a low-spirited tone of voice that told Ino and Sakura all they needed to know. They were aware of TenTen's struggles, but continued to encourage her nonetheless. It wasn't like she intended to give up.

"Hey, it'll get better, I'm sure of it. I'll even help promote you at my shop, how's that?" Ino offered with optimism.

"Why would a flower shop promote the sale of weapons, Ino?" TenTen questioned, reasonably skeptical.

"W-well, uh …" When it was put that way, Ino couldn't argue whatsoever. It wasn't like someone browsing flowers really had much need for weaponry. It would be a rare coincidence at best. The Yamanaka glanced at Sakura and motioned for a little aid, as it was sorely needed. "Sakura might have an idea, right?"

"The academy is still training ninja, you could ask to speak with the class and let them see the various tools you sell." Sakura offered.

TenTen considered this for just a moment. Ninja Tools were her trade, and there was no one in the village who knew them better than her. "You know, that's not a bad idea. Maybe if I offer some lessons on proper tool care and training, I could get more business among the upcoming genin and their parents could get them some sets as a gift!" The brown-haired kunoichi grinned, nudging Ino on the shoulder and winking at Sakura, "You two are lifesavers. I'm getting so desperate I was going to ask Lee for advice, and he's not exactly the master of subtlety."

Rock Lee and TenTen had begun to date a few years after the war. Having bonded as comrades for years, it was Lee who had finally worked up the courage to ask TenTen out for a date, and from what TenTen told them it was a night she would never forget. To this day they weren't certain if that was a good thing or a bad thing, with Lee it could have been both. She was married like the rest of them, and minus a few funny antics Lee did that embarrassed his wife beyond measure, TenTen was without a doubt deeply in love with him. Sakura couldn't have been happier for the pair.

"Oh? What did he have in mind? My shop could use a little promotion, maybe he could help?" Ino's flower shop was still a long-running business and it had no problems as it is, but if she could enlist the aid of a friend to help increase her profits, she wouldn't hesitate.

TenTen, by now, had broken the ice and took her chopsticks in hand. Taking the plate just in front of her, she removed the sizzling meat from the grill ahead and began to fix a small plate together. "The last time I asked Lee to help with my shop was when I first opened, and it was disastrous. You two really don't remember?"

Ino shook her head, while Sakura remained uncertain. Their lives had been hectic, and TenTen's shop had opened a long time ago. It had become difficult to recall the events when their day to day lives were already so packed.

"Right," TenTen took a small sum of meat from her plate and ate just as Sakura and Ino had followed up on her initial grab, "I asked him to hand out some flyers and help me promote my opening, and he was excited. I asked him to _hand out_ flyers. I asked him to _hand them out. To hand_._ Hand out the flyers._" TenTen couldn't stress this enough. "So I give him an hour. I clean my counters, I make sure every tool I have is straight and sparkling. He manages to come back in five minutes empty-handed." TenTen paused to reach for more meat, leaving the other two on the edge of their seats. "I asked him: 'Honey, why are you back so soon? I handed you over a hundred flyers.' And then he tells me: 'I found a new method of handing them out, come and see!' So I step outside, and what do I find? My flyers are falling from the sky!"

Sakura stifled her laughter and tried to keep her composure. Ino snapped her fingers in realization.

"I remember that day! At first I thought it was snowing out, but it was paper. Those were yours?"

"Yep. Apparently to hand something out meant toss the stack in the air and use taijutsu on it! Two words: Leaf Hurricane. It got the word out, what copies weren't totally torn apart from the force of his kick anyway." TenTen wasn't offended by Sakura's grinning. She laughed about it too from time to time. "Whenever I have a bad day in particular though, he's always there to tell me that tomorrow could bring something better. I couldn't stay mad at him for long, and he even cleaned up all the shreds by hand after apologizing." Sighing dreamily, TenTen closed her eyes and imagined his grin. "He can be a pain, but he's always there for me, and he hates letting me down."

Sakura and Ino smiled together at TenTen's transition from annoyance to love. Ino knew the feeling well, as did Sakura. It didn't take a genius like Shikamaru to figure out where the conversation was going. The significant others they had chosen to spend their lives with, through better or worse, sickness and health. It was rare that they had the opportunity to spend time like this, and even rarer to share little known facts and quirks about them because of their schedules.

Ino smiled with mischief behind it, her inner perversions ready and willing to come to life. Having always been one of the top gossip girls in their small circle, Ino was also the one most willing to brag about her sexual adventures with her husband. Neither TenTen nor Sakura knew if Sai was aware of how proud Ino was of his bedroom talents.

"Hinata couldn't make it tonight, or Karui, or Temari. So we've got all the stiffs out of the way."

"Hinata's a stiff?" Sakura questioned.

"About the juicy stuff, yeah. It's not like she'd ever talk about Lord Hokage's bedroom techniques."

"And we would!?" TenTen argued. Already familiar with Ino's prying, it didn't bother her as much as it would seem. Truth was, she was one of the few girls in the circle that would be able to boast about her husband's 'technique'. The only problem was you'd need to coax it out of her with a few drinks, and she had no intention of getting silly tonight. "If you wanted _that _kind of talk, you should have just had us meet elsewhere. No way am I getting into that kind of thing in a barbecue joint of all places, give me some credit here. Right Sakura?"

"…Yeah, right." Sakura had actually given Ino's choice of discussion some thought. It wasn't as if she wasn't content with her sex life, it's just that there was hardly one to begin with. Sasuke Uchiha wasn't a man of physical lust, and Sakura never expected him to be. As long as she had him to share her bed, she could endure a lack of sexual contact. It was Ino who had always been the quickest at bragging about her exploits when appropriate, and while Sakura wouldn't have minded putting her intimate life against Ino's, this wasn't the environment necessary.

That, and she'd probably win. It was a given that Sai probably had time to perfect his ability with Ino, and the last time Sakura could be intimate with her husband was over two months ago. Sasuke had been gone again, her friends knew that.

"Fine, you're right, this isn't the ideal place. But next time we're going to a bar!" Ino announced, receiving no complaints from her friends. Drinking socially was a good experience just as long as no one here overdid it.

A short period of talking about their families had begun. Ino had gone over the troubles of getting the new Ino-Shika-Cho trio to take their training more seriously. With Shikamaru handling business with Naruto and keeping him in line, Shikadai was left with very little encouragement. Choji's sassy daughter on the other hand outright refused to do anything when getting something to eat was on the line; her culinary abilities were growing according to her proud father, but that didn't mean they should forget about traditions. Inojin, Ino happily mentioned, was the only one making an effort to keep them in line, a trait she was confident came from her.

This left TenTen to quickly cut in before Ino had initiated another unintentional rant on Temari and Karui's lack of care for the next generation's formation. While the shop was still managing to run, TenTen was left to discuss with Ino and Sakura the joys of not being in her home all day. What customers she did manage to get were curious about her merchandise were always polite and a little clueless. Not only was she rewarded with teaching people something new about ninja tools, but she could come home to a warm meal and a clean house. Yes, much to Sakura and Ino's surprise, Lee had taken his assumed role seriously. While TenTen worked, Lee made certain the house was spotless and was already preparing dinner when she was making her way home. Father and son would greet her with a smile just before the unrelenting questions and concerns about her day came forward. How was her day? Did she meet anyone new? What would she like for dessert?

Sakura smiled at the scenario TenTen gave them and was more than happy that her friend could experience a joy like that. For a long time now Sakura too had wanted to set a scene just like that, if not for herself, then for Sarada. A warm, glowing home with a fixed dinner to come home to after a long day. Sasuke would be there for her too, asking her how she did on her latest test. Beaming with pride, Sarada would tell him about her amazing scores and how she missed him. Sasuke would smile at her and tell her how he wasn't going anywhere again, that his journeying was over for now. Sarada wouldn't go another day without him unable to welcome her home without good reason for it, and they could all sit down and have dinner like a normal family. It was something she had wanted for quite some time, but she never had the ability to ask Sasuke of it. Making him stay here when his heart and mind always took him elsewhere was selfish. Next time for sure, Sakura promised herself, she'd ask him to stay home. Not for her. Not for Naruto. Only for their daughter.

"What about you, Sakura?"

Sakura snapped out of her stupor, meeting Ino and TenTen's gaze.

"Sorry, what?"

"Your best memory with Sasuke. It can't have been public either, just you two." Ino explained.

"And it doesn't have to be sexual, either." TenTen gave Ino an unamused stare out of the corner of her eye, causing Ino to laugh uneasily.

"My best memory with Sasuke-kun? Let me think…" Sakura had begun to gather every fine memory she could of Sasuke. There were occasions where Sasuke could be very loving and concerned, several individual incidents could be named right now if she wanted to do so. The term 'best' made her want to up the ante; if it was to be labeled the best, then it had to be something both pure and unexpected. Something TenTen and Ino couldn't possibly guess. Before they had gotten married, and before Sasuke had even left Konoha for the first time, there was one time in particular the kunoichi could remember a Sasuke no one else knew about. Just thinking about what he said that day brought red to her cheeks.

"Oh, so you _do_ remember something?" Ino leaned in and reached across the table, prodding Sakura's forehead. "Come on, we're waiting!"

"All right, all right, let me properly recall it." Sakura's cheeks were tight as can be from her smiling, "Okay. It was just after our teams were assigned, and as you know I ended up with Naruto and Sasuke. I was sitting on a bench during lunch and thinking about how to really grab his attention, because at the time the only real physical asset I had was my stupid forehead. In the middle of all that, I saw Sasuke-kun leaning on a tree right ahead of me!" Sakura resisted the urge to hug herself at this nostalgia, and based on Ino and TenTen's excited stares they had no idea how this was going to end. "I began imagining that he'd come up and tell me my forehead was charming, and that he'd kiss it, but I accepted that was going to be impossible. But then he made his way over to me and said exactly what I was imagining. He tried to say it was something only Naruto would say, but it meant a lot to me regardless. This was before I even confessed to him, and I've carried that precious memory with me ever since. I guess you could say that was our very first 'moment'."

TenTen and Ino both were still hanging on to it. "Then what?" Ino asked.

"Well, then he sat down with me and talked to me about Naruto of all people. I said a few things about him and then I tried to make a move and kiss Sasuke-kun, but he ran off embarrassed about it. He was so shy back then!"

TenTen struggled to imagine it, and laughed as she did so. "Sasuke Uchiha running away from a kiss, huh? It's hard to believe, but you must have really had an effect on him. Ino, you competed with Sakura for him too, right? Would you have been jealous?" TenTen looked over to Ino, but her reaction was less resembling joy and jealously, but moreso thoughtfulness. The Yamanaka was staring up at the ceiling, arms folded. Sakura had stopped gushing and expected Ino to say something.

"Sasuke complimented you back when we graduated, all that time ago?" Ino peered back down at Sakura to find her nodding. "He wasn't really one to do that, in fact I don't think he ever gave anyone the time of day. Why would Sasuke have—"

"Hey, now! Are you trying to ruin her favorite memory?" TenTen asked, "She knows Sasuke better than we do now, and it's not like she'd forget what he looked like."

Ino looked to TenTen, puzzled. "It's true that she knows him better than we do _now_, but in the past we were both just people to him. In fact, the only boy I really remember interested in Sakura back then was Naruto."

"Naruto?" Sakura said. While her memory lingered on the past, she began to recall Naruto Uzumaki. An outcast of Konoha that no one respected, and who became a hero that earned the appreciation and love of his village. Sakura had found herself very fond of who Naruto was during their early Team 7 days. He could be clueless and loud, but when it counted he was dependable and always there when someone needed help. That boy she dismissed during their academy days was now the Hokage of the village, a goal he always screamed about when they were growing up. It had been some time since they had spoken together and Sakura intended to invite him over for dinner at some point in the future, perhaps when Sasuke got back from his ongoing trip. Sakura's affection for Naruto had never truly left, but he was a man with a family and a lot of responsibilities on his plate. Getting together to talk was difficult with their schedules. It had already taken Ino three weeks to set this gathering up, and in the end Hinata couldn't even make it here, nor Karui and Temari. "Naruto was interested in me back then, that's true, but Sasuke-kun had a sensitive side to him that day. He was really sweet."

"Hmm, yeah, but …why would he ask you what you thought of Naruto?" Ino's baffled expression moved to Sakura, and TenTen too was beginning to get curious. Ino knew Sasuke back then too, which was why it was more appropriate that Ino ask her this than anyone else. "They were rivals back then, and it's not like Naruto liked Sasuke and the other way around. It's hard to imagine Sasuke asking you, you didn't really like Naruto back then, right?"

"…" Sakura's mind was beginning to work, too. "Well, maybe he just wanted to get my opinion. We were on a team, maybe my input meant something."

"He seemed like he already had a strong opinion of Naruto, and it's not like he couldn't tell girls liked him. Hmm," Ino peered down at her empty plate, the meat long since consumed. By now they were only here to talk. "Come to think of it, during lunch I remember seeing Sasuke being ambushed."

"Ambushed?" TenTen asked, leaving Sakura growing more and more confused.

"A rope came around him. Shikamaru and I saw him get dragged inside a room, and then Sasuke shouted something: "Damn you Naruto!" I think. Naruto must have been the one to ambush him, not that it mattered, Sasuke did beat him up and leave."

Sakura's heart had begun to race at what Ino was suggesting to her, but it had calmed down once it was revealed that Sasuke had dealt with Naruto, as was expected. "Yeah, that's Sasuke-kun for you." Sakura smiled, and struggled to continue to do so. Talking about Naruto's past affection for her had always brought a painful mix of feelings to emerge. She cared for him deeply, she always would, but the past was in the past. Naruto had moved on and he was happy, she encouraged him to be with Hinata and he was happier for it.

"…But then Choji said something else, he said that he saw Sasuke leaving the room he left a few minutes prior."

"Wait two Sasuke's left that room?" TenTen had to comment, her interest growing stronger each passing second. "Sasuke left that room twice somehow?"

"It doesn't make sense, I know, but I'm positive I heard Sasuke mention Naruto's name. If two Sasuke's left that room, is it possible-"

"You're being crazy," Sakura began, voice firm and unwavering. In an ongoing fight to stop all doubt, she'd go against Ino's theory to protect her own memory. It was the one thing Sasuke could never have taken away from her, and although he may have forgotten about that it didn't mean she would. To suggest Sasuke could be beaten by Naruto was insane, both Ino and Sakura shared too much confidence in him to ever believe that. "Sasuke-kun was the best of our class, he was Rookie of the Year, remember? The one everyone expected to excel. Naruto was a different person back then, and I know for a fact he couldn't have taken Sasuke-kun out."

"In a direct fight it sounds dumb, I agree. Sasuke always beat Naruto in our exercises growing up. However," Ino brought her gaze back to TenTen, "An ambush is totally different from a head-to-head fight. Don't you agree?"

To Sakura's horror, TenTen agreed, head nodding a couple times. "If we're talking about the past, you remember that time when Naruto fooled Kiba in the Chuunin Preliminary round?"

Ino laughed immediately, "Yeah, he was always pulling pranks and doing stupid things. To think he could fool Kiba so easily, all that time joking around must have paid off—"

"No way." Sakura looked from Ino to TenTen, "You don't really think that something like that could be true, right? Choji must have been seeing things."

"Choji's many things, but he was never blind Sakura. To be fair I thought it was crazy too, but what you said Sasuke told you that day really does seem like something Naruto would tell you. No offense."

TenTen intervened before Sakura could engage her any further, "Did he ever come back?"

Sakura recomposed herself at TenTen's question. Sasuke did come back after that, but the conversation was entirely different than before. "Sasuke-kun did come back, yes."

"Well, what did he say after he ran away?" Ino questioned.

It struck Sakura as odd that, now of all times, that she had never thought about this before. Ino's perspective, as well as what Choji told her, were directly influencing her own precious memory of the situation. Sasuke's compliment to her was a precious one that was nestled deep in her heart, and it always had been.

"The first thing he asked me was … it was…" Sakura leaned back in her booth and placed a hand to her forehead. It had been such a long time ago, but if she could remember the exact details of Sasuke's compliment, then what came next should be a piece of cake. Her past self was grinning like a fool and waiting for him to come back, and Sasuke had been coming through, but it didn't seem like he was looking for her. He was looking around for someone or something else, but why?

"Where's Naruto…" Sakura mumbled, recalling it clear as day now.

"Where's Naruto?" Ino tilted her head, "If he beat Naruto up, he'd know where he was …in which case…" she trailed off quietly, and TenTen dare not break the silence this time.

"The first thing he said to me during lunch when he came back…it …it couldn't have been Naruto." Sakura was deep in disbelief, yet reasons for this coincidence were absent from her mind. Rationalizing everything was becoming more and more impossible, and even Ino and TenTen could see why things weren't adding up. It wasn't a matter of if Sasuke loved her back then, it was a matter of if it was really him that day that walked up to her and paid her that compliment. Sasuke wouldn't have cared for her opinion on Naruto, it wasn't as if he cared for her to begin with when they were just starting out, right? Her mind was racing, and her heart was beating intensely. It had made sense; every single detail Ino offered went with the story provided. Choji wasn't blind, Choji wasn't a liar, so he really must have seen Sasuke leaving again after Naruto's ambush. Why would Sasuke ask about Naruto if he won that skirmish? And worst of all, she knew that the second Sasuke was the real one because of one crucial detail, something that helped Sakura be 100% certain.

"_You're annoying."_

"Naruto…" Sakura quietly accepted the truth of it, staring dumbfounded at Ino and TenTen just across the table. Every precious memory of Naruto and the times they spent together raced in her head, leading up to one in particular that she regret most of all.

"_I hate people who lie to themselves!"_


	2. Chapter 2

_Stunned silence had come from Kakashi's revelation, leaving Sakura with so many questions that she didn't know where to begin. At first she wanted to laugh about this and put on a smile, believing it to be some kind of joke. The resolution of the war had only been days ago, and Sasuke received his pardon from the Five Kage for his efforts to save the world. Regardless of Sasuke's true motivation, the kunoichi couldn't help but begin to show discomfort across her face. With nothing but a wish that this was the start of a bad dream, and that she would wake up soon to the sounds of Naruto and Sasuke talking between her in the hospital, Sakura Haruno dared to begin asking questions she didn't want to know the answers to._

_"How …how could Sasuke-kun still be any sort of mission? He's home now. Everything Naruto and I worked towards was just for this, and now he's in the hospital recuperating – he's even smiling." Sakura had only just begun, fighting back the urge to raise her voice. "And why am I the one you chose for something like this to begin with? Is it because you thought I would be comfortable with it, because he's…"_

_"No, I didn't." Kakashi's head lowered, unable to maintain eye contact with what he was asked to do, "If it were up to me, I'd be joining you on heading back inside the hospital and forgetting all of this. The Council had acted without my knowledge, and with Lady Tsunade more than likely opting to resign from the position of Hokage in the coming months, they're not only testing my ability to do what's best for the village's interests, but have even gone as far as contacting all of the Daimyo for a decision to be made." Kakashi brought his eyes back to Sakura's, and even she could tell the burden of saying this was weighing on him. "Sasuke is too unpredictable –and too dangerous – to be left ignored again. It was unanimous, and that's the only reason I'm here telling you this. I'm afraid there's very little I can do to refuse the will of not only this country's Daimyo, but the others too."_

_"But what do the Daimyo really know about Sasuke-kun, and what he's endured? Let me see them, I can convince them otherwise."_

_"Sakura—"_

_"I can make them see how wrong it is to still think of him as an enemy. If they chose me to keep Sasuke …keep Sasuke-kun affiliated…?" Sakura had just remembered the core of Kakashi's explanation. Her fear and pain was turned into confusion. There were things that he wasn't telling her yet. "Kakashi-sensei, what exactly …what exactly do they expect me to do? Why do they need a kunoichi, specifically?"_

_Sakura could see his jaw tighten through his mask, eyes once again wandering away from her. She was on to something, something that Kakashi was clearly too ashamed to admit. By now the suspense was something she could no longer bear._

_"Just say it. The longer you wait, the harder it gets for both of us." Sakura urged._

_"…All right." Kakashi looked her dead in her eyes for the last time, "What the Council and our Daimyo agreed to, was the Uchiha Clan being tied to Konoha. However, Sasuke is someone no ordinary shinobi could ever restrain. Any attempt at intimidation would be immediately overwhelmed, and persuading Sasuke to remain here after everything that's happened would be just as unthinkable. What they debated on next was a means to always have Uchiha blood tied closely to Konoha."_

_Sakura nodded her head slowly, that Kakashi continue._

_"They want Sasuke at peace and the Uchiha Clan restored without his independence. If a kunoichi of the Leaf could become …closer to Sasuke, closer than Naruto ever could, then they believe that both parties will win. Sasuke achieves his clan's revival, and the Leaf will still have the Uchiha Clan."_

_The tone given was growing more and more somber with each new piece of information given. Sakura could now understand why Kakashi hesitated, and what strength it must have taken him to look her in the eye and inform her of what only took a few days to decide. Her hands were balled tightly, her body shaking with feelings she wasn't even sure she could describe. Sakura didn't erupt like she wanted to, or expected herself to. Kakashi appeared to be waiting for a reaction from her, but she couldn't offer anything satisfactory._

_After all of this, and they still wanted to control Sasuke._

_"Kakashi-sensei …my feelings aside, I'm sure you gave it your all to stop this. Am I right?"_

_"Yes. I told them everything I could, but nothing I said would discourage them. The world doesn't trust Sasuke Uchiha, and it's undeniable now that even the higher-ups want to keep him in line with means Tsunade would never agree to – that I would never agree to. That's why they went to the Daimyo, who are much more absolute than either me or Tsunade." Kakashi approached Sakura and placed both hands firmly on her shoulders. "This isn't in motion yet. If I can still say or do anything to make this never an option you know I will, but I was asked to prepare you for what might come."_

_Sakura's eyes lit up, "So, there might be a chance they'll change their minds?"_

_"If I'm being honest, the decision appeared final, but they're waiting to see what Sasuke decides to do first. If he remains in the village, this may not be necessary and things will come into play on their own. But if he chooses to wander, they'll expect you to persuade him otherwise." Kakashi removed his hands and took a deep breath. "There's something else I'd like to say."_

_With Sakura speechless, all she could manage to do was maintain eye contact with Kakashi. Although they stung as she fought an onslaught of tears that wanted to fall freely, there was a quiet fury to them. "What else?"_

_"I'm letting you decide what to do from here on. That means that if you decide to tell Naruto or Sasuke, I won't blame you for it. When I walk away, my part in this is completed."_

_Sakura had bewilderment etched across her face. "What? But …but if they find out about this, then won't you be in trouble? What if they imprison you?"_

_"I'm prepared to accept any consequences. Tell them I told you to inform Sasuke if you happen to choose that course of action. You'll be blameless, and I will admit to everything." His right hand came to rest atop her head, but he was no longer sure if this was to comfort her about what she's learned, or comfort him for giving her a choice like this. "Naruto and Sasuke have done enough for now. This isn't a decision I was comfortable making alone, and because you were the one decided to keep Sasuke close to home I think this should be yours as well. You still love him, don't you?"_

_She hesitated. For the very first time when it came to her affection for Sasuke, she hesitated. Her experiences with Sasuke, pleasant ones, were few and far between. Ever since his last genjutsu Sakura was starting to consider what loving Sasuke had meant for her, and what it had managed to provide for her all this time. There was this other boy that had never left her and never tried to harm her. As far back as her genin days with him she could always count on him to offer her some encouragement when she had needed it most. To be looked at fondly, even when she wasn't the prettiest girl, meant so much to her now than it did back then. She had asked herself for the past couple nights what had made her choose Sasuke, and what made her feelings much more important than anyone else's. The girl from the Land of Iron had been a part of his team, Karin, and he had discarded her and showed no hesitation once she had failed to meet his expectations._

_'That was a different Sasuke' _

_Yes, she told herself that too. The Uchiha was in a different place, and it was all because of Naruto that he was with them now. Naruto had made the effort she never did, and was prepared to make more sacrifices than she was prepared to. Sakura held nothing but disgust for her actions in the past related to how she treated both boys, but even after pouring her heart out to Sasuke nothing had reached him. It was a truth Sakura had begun to painfully accept: Sasuke could gain nothing from her that he couldn't have gained from anyone else. And then when she thought of that, her self-esteem plunged and she felt like absolutely nothing. Loyalty? What did her loyalty mean for him in the long run, and what did it really do to help him after all this time?_

_Knowing Sasuke just enough to withstand the heartache when he looked away meant that she would be the only one to suffer. After all, she had suffered for him all this time, yet for all the wrong reasons._

_"Yes," Sakura gently muttered, "I do. I'll …figure out what I plan to do and then let you know as soon as possible."_

_She had taken a second too long to respond, but it seemed satisfactory for Kakashi. He departed with an apologetic nod and left her to her thoughts. Both of them had much to think about now._

_As Sakura turned and made her way back to the hospital, a single tear had shed itself from the corner of her right eye. She moved to wipe it away in silence while her moral compass spun without any clear direction. To lie to herself, and to Sasuke, for as long as she could manage for the sake of his own earned peace? Or to tell the truth and use Kakashi – more than willing – to take the fall?_

* * *

Sakura had attempted to recover from her surprise by engaging TenTen and Ino on other topics of choice. She expressed as much interest in possible when it had come time to discuss beauty products, and had also become thrilled at the idea of TenTen helping Sarada when it had come to ninja tools. Behind her smile and interest, Sakura's inner turmoil was not fading. A memory of so long ago and so precious to her was not what she thought it was. A part of her wanted to be angry at Ino for putting it together, yet without her she would still be thinking back to that day as something truly special to her.

As the trio of friends left the restaurant, Ino stretched and suggested they spend a little time at the hot springs. TenTen's agreement had been given immediately, and both ladies looked to Sakura for hers.

"Well, actually—"Sakura hesitated quietly, but was quickly cut off by Ino.

"Oh, no!" Ino shook her head, her eyes narrowing with frustration, "No, no, no! Do you know how long it took me to get you to actually take a break? You are not, I repeat, NOT going to sneak away from us. It's not like we're boring or anything." Ino glanced at TenTen, who had become comically discomforted with the situation. "TenTen, are we boring?"

"I'd …like to think we're not." TenTen mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly.

"See? We're not boring!" The Yamanaka's arms folded, but her scowl had yet to fade. "Sakura, I get it. You work hard, you help save lives, you give kids bandages, and candy, all sorts of things. The hospital staff love you, and you've earned a serious amount of respect from the villagers over the years. But this was meant to be your weekend – we were finally going to hang out, and for once you could take that coat off and just be a girl. Not 'Doctor Haruno', just Sakura."

TenTen quickly brought her opinion into the mix before Ino could continue, "Yeah. Sakura, you don't have to prove anything if that's what you're trying to do. Relax, you don't need to be nose-deep in a book or at an operating table all the time. You can be something more than just a doctor, especially with us."

"Guys, really, I understand what you're trying to say but I'm …not going back to the hospital today." Sakura's eyes wandered elsewhere, off towards the faces of the past Hokage in the distance, but especially at the one most recent, "What you helped me figure out today …I think I should talk to Naruto about it."

"What, that? Sakura …we …could have been overthinking it, you don't need to worry about it so much."

Sakura understood what Ino was trying to do. A memory as precious as that one was had obviously meant much to her, and Ino must have felt some guilt about it. If the positions were reversed, Sakura would have felt that way, which is why she guessed Ino did now. "No, it made a lot of sense. Whether it's true or not, I just want to hear him say it. Besides, it's been a long time for us."

TenTen had grown intrigued. "You guys have seen each other at least every now and then, right? You make it sound like you'll be a complete stranger."

Sakura sighed inwardly. She may as well have been a stranger after all she had done to keep him at a distance.

"Anyway, Ino, TenTen, sorry to cut our time together short. I promise I'll make it up to you two." Sakura bowed her head, hoping for their approval although she didn't need it. As adult as they were, they were all still friends. She had already crippled one bond in her lifetime, and had no desire to cripple these. "It could be nothing, but I think I should still pay him a visit."

"…Fine. But remember what you said: You'll make it up to us." Ino lowered her folded arms. Pouting wouldn't do any good. Sakura's reason for leaving was respectable, not just another excuse to go back to the hospital and get work done. From the way she bowed her head and spoke, it seemed that she was telling the truth. "Starting by letting me know what happened tomorrow."

Sakura couldn't help but grin. "You and that burning desire to know everything that goes on."

"Just enough to satisfy me."

TenTen grimaced. "So, everything, right?"

Ino nodded shamelessly – it was purely coincidence that it was the same thing.

Giving a couple of hugs goodbye to the pair, Sakura had watched them make for the hot springs, leaving her to turn and make her way to the Hokage's office, not at all in a hurry to face him.

Anticipation met anxiety, and they weren't the best of friends.

* * *

A laptop was closed quickly and quietly, power shutting down and bringing silence into the office of the Seventh Hokage. Naruto Uzumaki had grown exhausted, and looking up at Shikamaru Nara didn't make things any more relaxing. Mission requests were made much more convenient, but there was unrest when it came to trade. An altercation between several traders on the border of the Land of Fire had prompted a momentary chat with the Kazekage – and long-time friend – Gaara. With two parties telling different stories, all changing to suit their needs, there was nothing more they could do than compensate for the goods that were destroyed in the fight.

"I thought past grudges were gone by now," Naruto leaned back into his chair, eyes closing.

"Peace isn't always simple. They're still competitors, even if the trade isn't murder and sabotage."

"Yeah, but we were closer allies than that. I'd expect this between Iwa, Kumo, and Kiri …yet it's happening among even Konoha and Suna, too."

The world was peaceful; ninja weren't as big a necessity as they used to be. People still had to adjust to peace after going so long without trusting one another, and here he was trying to find the answer to it all. Shikamaru was a big help when it came to getting things done, but there were issues that he wanted to deal with first hand. Gaara agreed to discipline those on his side of the quarrel, leaving Naruto to do things his way. Unfortunately that meant that Shikamaru would be doing it himself.

"So, you'll talk to the ones involved then, right?"

"Right. No distractions for you, you're nearly settled in after all. Pretty soon I won't need to watch you like a hawk, will I?" Shikamaru took a small stack of papers off of Naruto's desk and examined them. Fines for the traders; they were going to lose more than they'd gain by fighting. Since neither party could admit fault, it was the fairest resolution that could be agreed to. "Anyway, it's about that time again. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, later."

Shikamaru had departed quietly and closed the door behind him. Left to his thoughts, Naruto's concern about today's matters had evaporated. A short nap might have even been in order if it weren't for the three soft knocks at his door several minutes later.

"Hm?" Naruto opened his eyes and looked to his door. It was highly unlikely that Shikamaru had forgotten something, he was way too careful about matters like this. And besides that, no one had ever knocked so softly on his door before. Usually what followed was an emergency that was almost always related to his son. Tired as he was, he stood up from his seat and made his way towards the door. "Come in, as long as you're not trying to keep me here for another hour."

There was a certain level of expectation when it had come to this job; someone often needed you, and there was no avoiding that. Out of a very lengthy list of people he could have expected to show up at this time, Naruto wasn't prepared for who he was about to see again.

His blue eyes had met green, and couldn't be drawn anywhere else.

Sakura Haruno stood in front of him, appearing more surprised that she was there than he was. Her lips were slightly parted, and without his knowing so was his. Words had failed both of them, and the silence in the room was no stranger than the fact they were face to face like this after such a long time.

Naruto had reacted first, his surprise morphing into one of joy and excitement. All earlier fatigue had vanished now that he had something to be excited about.

"Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed, nearly making her jump. Reality had returned to both, stunned silence had collapsed and all that stood now was Naruto's energy soaring through the roof. "It's been a long time since you've come to see me, how are you? How's Salad? Are things going well at the hospital—'

"One question at a time." Sakura wanted to chide him for his impatience, but if she were being honest with herself she would admit that his energy was contagious. Before she had even entered the door she had contemplated turning around and forgetting about this; Shikamaru had been passed on the way here, and had told her that he was getting ready to leave. Alone and without distractions, it would be the perfect time to speak to him with his duties for the day fulfilled. Sakura hadn't noticed it herself yet, but his smile was contagious as well, and for the first time in ages she was smiling at him with no strings attached.

"Sorry, it's just …with what I do and what you do, it's been hard to say hello and all." He brought a hand to the back of his neck and laughed sheepishly. "It's to be expected, but I still feel bad that we don't have much time to spend together anymore."

"Y-yeah. That's why I came by, because it's been a long time. Ino had convinced me to take a break and, well, here I am." Sakura replied uneasily.

It had been simple: Come here, and get an answer. She had no intention of staying here very long, yet the moment she had looked on his face and saw it light up, she had lost any idea of leaving. Genuine excitement, something she sorely lacked, something Naruto always managed to bring when she needed it most. Her heart pounded not out of fear, but by just being alive. No despair, no anxiety of what she did and how she chose to live – this was something that had been lost to her.

"And it's just Sarada now, 'Salad' was deemed too immature."

"Eh? But she loved that nickname when she was younger! What changed?"

"She's growing up faster than I'm willing to admit. She can pack her own bag when she goes to her grandparents now. I remember when we used to do it together and I'd always quiz her on what was necessary." Sakura thought back fondly to a younger Sarada rushing around the room and challenging herself to not forget anything when she went to visit grandma and grandpa for the weekends in the past. Reminiscing about her early days of motherhood didn't seem appropriate now, especially since it had little to do with Naruto.

Peering behind him, his desk was littered with books and empty cups of instant ramen. The aroma of the room wasn't bad, but it was as messy as she'd expect of Naruto.

"Even as the Hokage you're still messy?" Sakura narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm disappointed in you, you know."

Naruto laughed nervously and lowered his head slightly. It was true that he could be messy, Sakura had understood his lack of cleanliness. "Y-yeah, if I knew you were coming by I would have tried to clean up more. Sorry, Sakura-chan."

In spite of herself, Sakura's cheeks turned red at that idea. Cleaning up his office just for her …he hadn't changed at all. "D-don't do it for me, do it for you." She stepped past him and moved to the trash bin beside his desk, miraculously empty. "Do you have somewhere important to be right now?"

"No, not really."

"Good. I'll help you clean up. As Hokage, you should be able to keep his office clean no matter the circumstances." Sakura reached for a short stack of empty noodle cups and dumped them into the trash.

Naruto was surprised by Sakura's sudden offer, but he welcomed the experience. With a grin he joined beside her and helped dump his trash. Sakura had taken it a step further by checking his desk for dust, and even helping place his assortment of books back on the nearby shelf – in alphabetical order!

By the time they were finished, the office was spotless. Naruto barely recognized his office after Sakura had helped him fix it up, and actually having his books on the shelves would take some getting used to. It would beat having to look for something specific and then get frustrated later. Beaming at Sakura, Sakura's smile was automatic at this point. They had given it one last satisfactory glance before Naruto and Sakura both departed for the evening.

"You know, that was a lot of fun." Naruto said, thoughtfully. "And cleaning's never really been my thing."

"I've noticed." Sakura huffed in disappointment, but it was only so Naruto would turn to look at her. "You're going to keep that office clean now, aren't you?"

"Of course!" Naruto didn't hesitate, much to Sakura's surprise. "That's some of the most fun I've had in a long time. Maybe I just need someone to clean with."

"You have Hinata, don't you?"

Naruto looked to the ground and began to wonder what it was he really meant. As he did this, citizens in Konoha offered the pair greetings and well wishes, and they had done so in return. Thanks to that, Naruto was able to give Sakura a suitable answer without the pressure of silence coming between them.

"I do have Hinata, but because of what I do …I don't have a lot of time to spend with her during the week. Not to mention she has to do most of the house work because I'm not around." Naruto brought full attention to Sakura, just as the well wishes of those around them started to dim down. "I wish I could take a weekend off, too. It's only been about several months, but it can really take its toll on me."

Sakura sympathized in silence. His eyes were tracing her face, seeking approval or disapproval of some sort. Unfortunately for him, she was able to understand what he was going through to a small extent. Sarada had her – Sarada always did – but the one person Sarada really wanted was off again. She never expected Naruto to be struggling with something like this.

Without wanting to risk the mood heading in a downward spiral, she instead smiled at him as her arms went around her back and locked behind her waist.

"Naruto, I know it can be hard …but no one said being a full-time parent and a Kage was going to be easy. You're a man, and you're the village's hero …so …don't be so down about it, okay?"

He had a family to return home to each and every night: a lovely wife, a growing son, and even an adorable little girl. Sakura believed he might have been underestimating how incredible it was to have them welcome you home after a hard day, but knowing Naruto he'd already be more than aware of what that means when you grew up like he did.

"To be honest …I'm a little envious of Hinata. She probably has it hard too when it comes to missing you, and wanting you to be there. What you ought to do is make an effort to just leave work at the door."

"Hm? I do …I mean, I try my best." Naruto would think back to his demeanor when he got home each day. As far as he was aware, he was always happy to be back. "Coming home means I'm not at the office, and I can just be more than Hokage. It's one of the only times I can feel like I'm more than that, other than with you."

Sakura averted her gaze, but couldn't mask the blush that had come. Whether he meant to do it or not, Naruto always had a funny way of making her feel special. To deny him her company was a blessing for him. Shouldn't he have been happier to not deal with her, after everything?

"What makes you say that, Naruto? I don't treat you any different from everyone else."

Naruto didn't even need to think about it.

"Well for starters, you still call me Naruto."

"So? Anyone can call you Naruto, I don't see what makes that special."

"Yeah, but I'm not Lord Hokage or anything – well, I am – but you see me for who I am more than most these days. Ever since I took the position from Kakashi-sensei, I feel like people address me differently. It's hard to explain without really being me; you aren't afraid of telling me how it really is, and when I act stupid or disappoint you … you don't hold back. It's something I really value in you. You're honest."

Honest with everyone but herself, Sakura couldn't help but think. After all this time, after every horrible thing she had said to him, Naruto had never let his opinion of her falter. She was beginning to grow pleasantly warm from Naruto's praise.

"You never know, Naruto …I could be a liar, too." Sakura forced a smile, already knowing better.

Naruto didn't appear to think much of what Sakura had said. His attention suddenly appeared divided, eyes darting from several different shops surrounding them. Once he had stopped, Sakura had too. Just moments after they had both come to a complete halt, Naruto had begun to laugh. At first it was silent, shortly becoming louder and blissful. Sakura was absorbed in it; she may not have comprehended just why it was, but to hear him happy and laughing …it made her feel tingly. Heart shuddering from the pleasant sensation in her ears and the handsome face of her old friend, Naruto had managed to stop just as Sakura was about to finally ask what he was really laughing about.

"Sorry, it's just …I have no idea where we're going right now. I've spent so long always having a place to be all the time that I've never had the opportunity to just wander around like this." He gestured to a nearby mask stand, the owner showing a small group of children what sort of monster or other strange creature they could become with just a little imagination. "We've passed here four times. At first I didn't notice it, but by the time I did …I didn't really want to. This is nice."

Looking around, Sakura did begin to notice that they've walked down this main street in particular at least once before. She never would have guessed four times.

"Anyway, Sakura-chan, you should be proud too." His left hand came to settle on her shoulder, gripping her loosely. "You've completely surpassed Granny Tsunade, and you have a really gifted daughter. She's as smart as you were in the academy, and in enough time she'll be as beautiful as you. I can't help but feel as though you're underestimating yourself a little. Is everything okay?"

Nothing's been okay for over a decade.

Sakura's smile betrayed her true feelings. At this point lying was a reflex, only made worse by how much Naruto believed in her.

"I'm fine, silly. And what's with all this sudden buttering up? You make me feel …"

Desirable. Interesting. Worthwhile in the greatest sense. She was a married woman, and married to the sole survivor of the Uchiha Clan after the war's conclusion. It wasn't often she got compliments outside of the hospital, especially from good-looking men. Naruto wasn't even trying; in his eyes she could tell that this wasn't about making her feel good, it was about reminding her that she was still someone important to him. Nothing had changed for Naruto, he was still that sweetheart with a big, dumb grin on his face.

"Embarrassed." Sakura finished, smirking.

Naruto chuckled and began to walk again, Sakura proceeding beside him. Even without a destination he was content with going forward, both aimless and content with himself.

"Do you mind me saying those things?" He asked with humorous caution, but was very much serious.

"…No." Sakura mumbled her honest opinion of Naruto's words. He believed her to be an honest woman who wouldn't hold back on him, so it was only fair that he have the right to say what he'd like with some level of discretion. While he still had moments where tact was dim on him, Naruto was just one big sweetheart beneath all that goofiness. "Not at all. In fact, I originally came to ask you something… but it can wait until later, I'm sure you've got to get home."

"I'm not in any hurry, I can get there in a flash." Naruto pointed his right thumb at his chest, "Besides, what kind of a man would I be if I let a lady walk home by herself?"

"Oh?" Sakura scoffed playfully, "Well I guess I should be thankful that Lord Seventh has time to escort me home!"

The two exchanged banter, Naruto acting like the stereotypical gentlemen that Sakura was putting him on a pedestal to be. Sakura returned fire by playing up the role of a damsel; the fear of breaking a nail had paralyzed her and she swooned, causing Naruto to get behind her and help keep her up and fan her. Several minutes of amusement had passed, and to the dismay of both Sakura and Naruto she was now just outside of her home now. The two looked at the door, and then, finally, back at each other.

"Well …it was fun while it lasted." Naruto would begin.

Sakura nodded her head. "Yeah, it really was…"

"You never did tell me what you wanted to ask me before. It was the only reason you showed up, right?"

"…Hey, don't say it like that Naruto."

It was a truth that hurt her more than the one that really should be hurt. If it wasn't for her conversation with Ino, would she have even thought about seeing him today? Would she have had this much fun? Odds were, she'd be at home cleaning. If she wasn't cleaning, she'd be reading. If she wasn't reading, she'd be resting, resting for work that she didn't have in the morning. Her entire life for the longest time had been centered on constant distractions, but today had been different. A genuinely good time with Ino and TenTen, and now walking home with Naruto like the old days.

Sakura wasn't going to deny that she wanted more of this …maybe enough time had passed from her failures to allow her the chance to move on and smile again. Smile again, with Naruto.

"I did come to confirm something, but …" Sakura looked content with herself in spite of needing to part ways for now. The sun over Konoha was beginning to dip low; Naruto had a family to get home to, and a wife who …was one of the luckiest women in the world. "I think I don't need to ask anymore. It's been confirmed."

"Hm? Just by talking?"

"Yes. I'll explain tomorrow."

Naruto was momentarily caught off guard, but Sakura seemed to have made up her mind about something before he even knew it. It was rare to see Sakura at all any more, but with the promise of seeing her again tomorrow he could go to bed with some excitement.

"Y-you're coming back?" Naruto stammered, eyes widened.

"Is that …bad?" Sakura asked.

"Of course not!" He exclaimed. "I'm already looking forward to it-ttebayo!"

To Naruto, the faster he got home, the faster the next day could begin. He had much to do that night: He wanted to help Hinata with dinner, as well as get to see his children. Himawari loved stories, Bolt loved knowing about his pranks as a kid himself. Sakura had lacked time to talk with him for so long, and at long last they had the opportunity to catch up, starting tomorrow.

He backed away and waved goodbye, "See you tomorrow, Sakura-chan!"

"Hey, Naruto!"

Naruto froze, that wide smile remaining. Sakura felt an invisible spotlight on her, but the only one looking was Naruto. Somehow that had made her more nervous than her students at the hospital. Endearingly, Sakura tilted her head and closed her eyes with a pleasant smile of approval towards him. Naruto's heart nearly missed a beat at seeing such a sight again.

"Keep that office clean, and no more slacking …you got that?"

"It's a promise!"

With vigor backing his every word and every move, Naruto had given her a thumbs up with his bandaged hand and had taken towards the rooftops now to speed the process of getting home.

Sakura leaned against her door, facing towards the rooftops she lost sight of him over. Out of several emotions that were ongoing, there was some catharsis to it all. Her smile had returned to her, her real smile.

* * *

**A/N - This chapter came quickly because it was already written beforehand. Chapter 3 will not be coming within a day, sorry ;C~ Please let me know what you think, reviews mean a lot :3**


	3. Chapter 3

_Sakura's footsteps echoed uncomfortably in her ears as she made her way back to the room that held Naruto and Sasuke. With each step forward, she felt the weight of her new knowledge impeding her speed, causing each step to be painfully drawn out and awkward to any who watched her from a distance. Luckily for her the staff were far too busy catering to multiple patients across many rooms and floors to pay very much attention to her, preventing any questioning. The war's conclusion still had plenty of wounded that needed care, but she would have gladly trade that level of stress for what she endured now. With eyes focused to the floor beneath her feet, the kunoichi was beginning to count the number of steps it would take her to reach the room at her current pace. _

"_Tell the truth." Sakura whispered to herself, wishing it was more of a command than a choice. In the handful of minutes she had been alone, the scenarios were running rampant in her head without rest. Kakashi-sensei offered her a way out, yet the cost meant his own punishment, something he was more than willing to take. Alternatively, go through with the mission: keep Sasuke here with questionable means for an otherwise selfish motive. Her feelings were consulted, but only because she needed to know the truth for herself. Something had changed the day Naruto and Sasuke had concluded their battle. No one else had known what Sasuke had subjected her to, what final image he had given her before he went and tried to do the unthinkable. _

_Her feelings had been meaningless. All this time she had hoped that a shred of affection and care for her wishes had been locked away in his heart. She remembered how desperate she had become in the face of him and just how desperately she wanted him to return. Painfully she remembered just how easily she was tossed aside time and time again. It didn't matter how many times she played her memories back, because the result had never been different. Sasuke wasn't the boy she crushed on in her younger academy days. Having become so complex and experiencing more than she had ever tried to comprehend, it left her wondering if there was ever hope for her as his lover. She was prepared to move forward with him now, but she was struggling to find a sliver of hope for herself the more her mind traveled to the very recent past._

"_Hey, you're going to share some of those, right?" A male voice asked from a nearby room – the room Sakura happened to be moving to. _

"_Of course I am, idiot. Don't you see me offering Sasuke?" Retorted a feminine voice, notably more feisty than the male counterpart. _

"_Only Sasuke. Jugo and I need to eat, too!"_

"_Well when he comes back with food, you can eat!" _

_Sakura returned her focus to the present and set aside her memories of the past. She had at last found herself outside of Naruto and Sasuke's room, but the dread of being face to face with them without coming to a decision was halted in favor of satisfying her curiosity. She had reached for the handle of the door – already slightly parted – and squeezed it tightly before deciding instead to just peer through the small window._

_From what could be seen, it appeared a couple of Sasuke's friends were in some sort of dispute. She had been briefly introduced to them before: Suigetsu, a white-haired and purple-eyed swordsman who was born in Kirigakure, accompanied by Karin who was red-haired and red-eyed. The tall and slightly intimidating one named Jugo was missing. Lastly, Sasuke Uchiha was tucked in a hospital bed sitting and observing his comrades with an expression Sakura could only call satisfactory. This was his team, 'Taka' he had called them. A team he had chosen to help him on his journey shortly after parting ways with Orochimaru some time ago. They were very adamant on staying close to him. Having never been able to see Sasuke without her in the vicinity, the interest in how he handled this situation was active and something she wanted to satisfy. Anything to buy time. _

_Suigetsu placed an idle hand on his stomach and looked to the small gathering of apples, oranges and bananas sitting in a basket on the desk besides Sasuke's bed. While he stood beside the window in the far side of the room, it was Karin who was beside Sasuke, seated with a small knife in hand. While she was at work carving up apples, Suigetsu had been waiting for the inevitable offer for some fruit. Somehow he had managed to forget just who he was dealing with, and judging from the ignorance Karin chose to feign, it seemed she was more than willing to drag it out._

"_Jugo could be lost, so why not toss something my way in the meantime? Not like Sasuke's going to eat all of that." Suigetsu grumbled, gesturing the hand that wasn't on his stomach towards himself. _

"_Sasuke eats first. When it comes to who gets fed among us, you're at the bottom of the list." Karin responded coolly, delicately carving up the skin surrounding a bright red apple. "You basically survive on nothing but water to begin with. You can wait!"_

"_A fair point—wait, bottom of the list?"_

"_The bottom of the list." Karin repeated. Having completed skinning the apple in hand, she held it up to examine it closely. After a quick and careful scan to make absolutely certain no trace amounts of the red skin remained, Karin smiled and held it out for Sasuke. "Here, Sasuke! If you don't like it, I can always get something else for you." She fought against her smile, but couldn't maintain the façade. If she were being honest with herself, feeding Sasuke was always a small, innocent fantasy of hers. He'd be hesitant about it at first, but there was always a small chance he'd let her do it one day. A spoonful of something delicious, or a bite out of something sweet – other than herself, of course. _

_Sasuke had remained silent as the banter between his two comrades took place, but when the focus had returned to him he had held up his right hand – his only hand, now – and refused the offering in silence. Karin wasn't the least bit surprised, but she silently credited herself for trying. Disappointed as she was, the words that left Sasuke next had served as a powerful pick-me-up for her. _

"_Thank you Karin, but I'd like to wait for Jugo to come back before we get started." The Uchiha voiced his preference and did so without ill intent. Karin's gesture was appreciated, but unnecessary. Waiting for Jugo was both a kindness and a necessity for what would come next with Taka. "Suigetsu, you can eat if you'd like." _

"_Nah, forget it," Suigetsu shrugged his shoulders and then crossed his arms, becoming much more reluctant, "I'm sure Jugo wouldn't mind, but if you're going to keep playing it cool like this then I don't think I can hold anything down with that expression on Karin's face."_

_Karin, who was still incredibly warm from Sasuke's appreciation, had cupped her face with her free hand. Cheeks slightly reddened as she repeated his gratitude in her head again and again, she had only ceased her subtle squirming in her seat once Suigetsu had opened his mouth. Adjusting her glasses, the response was swift and much like the Karin that Suigetsu loved to screw with. _

"_Wh-what the hell are you talking about you dumbass!? What expression!?" _

"_You know the one," the Hozuki swordsman gestured towards her with a pointed finger, expression turning cocky, "that is, the one expression you always seem to have around him. Thankfully your tongue is inside your mouth this ti—"_

_The dangerously-close rambling about certain details better left unsaid was abruptly ended by a sudden blow to the mouth, not by fist, but by a recently peeled apple. Karin had one hell of a throwing arm, and apparently her aim wasn't too bad either – Suigetsu's mouth was now occupied by said peeled apple, lodged in deeply thanks to his sharp teeth. _

"_I don't know what the hell you think you're babbling about, but keep quiet so he can relax a little damn it!" Karin growled, crossing her arms and spinning around in her seat with her back now to both boys. Brow twitching with irritation, Suigetsu's role in remaining here had yet to show any purpose besides getting in her way of caring for Sasuke. "Why don't you go find Jugo or something!?"_

_Chewing the apple whole, Suigetsu paused before swallowing. He'd hand it to Karin, she knew how to skin an apple. _

"_So when I leave you'll lock the door again? You remember what happened last time, right?" He looked to the weapon on his back, having recovered it after a couple painful hours of scouring several separate battlefields in the war's aftermath. The Executioner's Blade was fully formed, and he looked at it with pride, having vowed never to lose it again. "I don't think the staff would appreciate me slicing up a door," his gaze returned to Karin's back, "and where the hell did you get a fruit basket anyway? You never left the building to even buy one."_

"_That's not important! Besides, at least Jugo and I are doing something!" Karin cocked her head back at Suigetsu, aggravation in her eyes, "What have you been doing this whole time?"_

"…_I've been protecting Sasuke, of course."_

"_From who?"_

"_Well, there's this girl, you see. She's got red hair, a distasteful attitude, and doesn't look half as good as a certain blonde I saw walking around—"_

_From this point onward, Sakura's ears could no longer pick up the conversation between Sasuke's friends. Instead, the muffled yelps of the swordsman were conflicting with the obscenities that the redhead, Karin, was shouting at him. As Suigetsu toppled over and felt the full wrath of Karin's fists, Sakura's eyes rested on Sasuke again, half-expecting some sort of complaint or irritation in response to the sudden act of open violence. What she was witnessing was the opposite._

_It was difficult to perceive Sasuke's true feelings, yet for once in her life Sakura had cause to believe in his smile. He was a man that had once called her annoying, yet that Sasuke seemed well and truly dead. It was a faint smile, but it was there. Once his head had begun to turn towards the door, Sakura had moved away from the window and pressed her back against the wall just beside it._

"_He's happy now." she had no right to assume what made Sasuke happy, but what she had witnessed inside showed her that he was different now. Rage no longer favored him, only a desire for peace and company he valued. Telling him what she knew now, what was demanded of her, would only serve to stunt his recovery and destroy that happiness. Sasuke deserved to be happy after everything the world had taken from him. If she told him what was really going on, he may never find peace. Yet it wasn't like a lie served better when there were people that still didn't trust him. Her mind was a battleground and no matter what she chose, each decision felt criminal in its cruelty. Within her heart, all she wanted was to be able to make both Naruto and Sasuke happy again._

_She couldn't decide like this, not with that smile in her head._

"_Sakura." A voice from someone approaching her had took her attention. Jugo, cloaked and with bags in hand, had come to approach the kunoichi who was staring forward blankly just beside his destination. "Is something wrong?"_

_Sakura followed the voice, eyes meeting with Jugo's. Probably the most silent and mysterious of Sasuke's company, she hadn't managed to find out much about Jugo as he and the others stayed with Sasuke. From what she had been able to tell so far, he was as loyal as the rest of his comrades. There was little more she could surmise, but what had stood out to her most was how he stared out the window from time to time, appearing happy just examining birds flying by. _

"_Oh, no, it's nothing." She glanced back towards the doorway, still hearing the sounds of Karin and Suigetsu arguing within. "I … couldn't help but notice that Naruto was gone. His bed was empty. Did something happen while I was gone?" _

"_He moved into the next room for now. There were too many visitors for one room, so he volunteered to move for the time being." _

"_I see …so, just down there, right?"_

_Jugo nodded and stepped past Sakura, hand gripping the knob Sakura had released moments earlier. Realizing how inconsiderate he must have appeared, he froze and looked to Sakura once again. _

"_Did you want to come inside for a minute?" the gentle giant offered._

"_Maybe later. I should see Naruto. Thank you." Sakura bowed her head respectfully._

_Jugo let out a small hum of acknowledgment before stepping inside, this time shutting the door behind him. Sakura was left to approach the room just beside that one, taking several short strides outside the door. Although closed, she could hear voices on the other side, but this time wouldn't bother just peeking inside. If there was one person that could offer her some idea of what she should do, it would be Naruto himself. What she knew would affect him, too. _

_With a deep breath and Sasuke's smile still something to look back at fondly, Sakura would open the door and step inside._

* * *

"_About time, Jugo. You get lost or something?" Suigetsu mumbled, body liquefied as a puddle in the ground while Karin wiped off her hands with a cloth by the desk. Putting himself back together, Suigetsu moved to retrieve the bento box that was handed to him, while Karin had taken one for both Sasuke and herself, as if Karin's assault had never even occurred._

"_He's here again, that's all that matters." Sasuke would take his bento in hand, not voicing a complaint when Karin opened it and broke his chopsticks for him. Muttering a quiet thanks in appreciation, he looked from Karin, to Jugo, and to Suigetsu in silence. Suigetsu was the first to dig in and eat with haste, the apple clearly not enough to steady his appetite. Jugo was much more moderate in eating, coming to rest just beside Karin. She was eating even slower than Jugo, only because her eyes were on him. There was no greater motive to watching him – there was an opportunity here to offer to feed him personally, but his eyes were different. It had taken a little more silence between them before Jugo and Suigetsu had noticed that Sasuke was putting something together in his mind. Jugo was the one to speak out first._

_"Is something wrong, Sasuke?" He peered at the untouched meal and the idle chopsticks; he was certain this was the small lunch Sasuke had wanted, and was certain that it wasn't the meal that held him back._

_Suigetsu munched quietly. When he looked to Karin, the mood was quite different from before. What he expected was some silent expression of admiration and lust. Instead she was focused on him with a little more intensity than that; she waited for his word, which was something he mentioned prior to Jugo running out to get some lunch. Hospital food didn't sit well with him anyway._

_"So, let's get to it then." Suigetsu muttered before placing more rice in his mouth, "What was it you needed to talk about?"_

_Sasuke set his chopsticks down, appetite not pressing him nearly as much as Suigetsu's had. He was content recovering the last few days while they all remained themselves in his presence. Part of him was happy about this, but after everything they had been through together Sasuke was questioning just how far they'd go. If they've come this far, they had the opportunity to pursue other areas in their life, but so far they had been standing by him here. No expression of gratitude, either vocal or physical, would be enough._

_"I've got a lot to atone for," Sasuke finally said quietly, "and I want it to start with you three …with Taka."_

* * *

"Thank you, and come again!" Ino bid farewell to a middle-aged woman tailed by her young daughter, both carrying pots; the middle-aged woman held lilacs, and the daughter held lily's. An explanation of their meaning was offered to both, as was customary of Ino given her knowledge of flora. Youthful innocence and confidence was held with the lilacs, and the lily was first and foremost representing purity. Not only did her customers leave with a beautiful set of plants, but they learned a little more about what they signify as well.

With a successful sale and the satisfaction of pleasing her customers, the blonde would pick up a nearby cup of coffee that was set aside five minutes prior to her sale. Gently trying to cool it down with a soft burst of air between her lips, she would take a smooth sip from it and savored both the taste and the warmth it brought her. Sighing from the pleasurable sensation, her eyes would wander off to the other side of the counter where Sakura examined a set of orchids, taking in the scent of them. "Okay, where was I?"

Sakura looked over her shoulder, lips pursed. "My coat."

"Oh," Ino remembered her earlier mention of Sakura's coat, representing her role as a staff member of the hospital, "right, why are you wearing that again? Weekend off, remember?"

"It's become a habit."

"Well, it's a bad one!" Ino took another sip of coffee and exhaled in relief, her early-morning spirits being rejuvenated. Sakura had worn the coat yesterday too, but it had been excusable then. "Sakura, I know your work is important, but—"

"But I need to learn when to take a break and enjoy myself – you've mentioned that a lot, I know." Sakura raised a cup of coffee that was idle in her own hand, blowing on the heated drink before taking her own sip. Feeling invigorated with each gulp, Sakura approached Ino on the other side of the counter and set the cup down. "I'm …trying to take it a little easier, but it's just not easy."

"Trying is good, keep trying, because I'll keep bugging you until I see some results." Ino set her cup down and folded her arms, leaning against the counter. "So…"

"…So…?" Sakura mocked, confused.

"How did you hit it off with Naruto yesterday? I mean, after I let you go, after you blew Tenten and I off, I figured that it would have been worth it. What happened?"

Ino smiled, expecting some juicy details to emerge. Despite the closeness that Naruto and Sakura now lacked, she believed that their friendship would pick back up like it was only yesterday that they talked. With what Sakura had discovered just yesterday, the shop owner was expecting some seriously good conversation in regards to the 'truth' of Sakura's greatest memory of her husband.

"I helped him clean his office, and we talked both during and afterward. It was almost like nothing was different," Sakura narrowed her eyes, "and that's all that happened. No big scoop there."

"He walked you home."

Sakura blinked, startled, "How did you—"

"Sakura, come on, you know me. Something as big as Naruto walking you home isn't going to just be ignored." Ino closed her eyes and laughed quietly. "From what I was told, you were giggling like you were a kid again. Were you really going to keep that from me? I have my ways of finding things out, you know."

"…It's not a big deal, we were having a little fun. No one should be talking about something so trivial!" Sakura huffed, but was incapable of masking the growing redness of her cheeks. "Anyway, I said I'd come back today."

"Then what are you doing here?" Ino eyes opened, amusement turning to curiosity. If such a good time was to be had with Naruto, even if Sakura was reluctant to talk about how much fun she had, then staying here only meant one thing: "You're stalling, aren't you?"

"Wh-why would I stall?"

"I don't know why, but I do know that you had a good time and now you're reluctant to go back. So, talk to me." The Yamanaka's head tilted and her stare was directed at Sakura's eyes. The intensity was so deep that she almost felt that Ino was looking directly into her soul.

No sense in trying to dodge the subject, not when Ino was figuring it out with ease.

"All right, fine …I feel bad, for not keeping up with him like I should have been." Sakura broke into the details of her avoidance carefully, hoping Ino wouldn't press her too hard for the hidden truth. "I did have a great time with him, and even though he had every reason to hold my absence against me …he didn't. Naruto was glad I was with him again, and it was like …it was like I was never gone in his life." Sakura frowned. "Does that make sense?"

"Yep," Ino said curtly, "it makes sense. You feel bad, but listen to what you said: He didn't hold it against you, he's glad you're back again and all he wants to do is experience more of that again, just like you. Naruto may be the Hokage, but he's still someone important to you, and I think—no, I _know for a fact_ that he still values you after all this time. After everything you two have been through, do you really think he'd hold a grudge because you decided to do nothing but work?" Ino noticed Sakura's expression warp to one of self-discovery. It almost appeared as though she never thought of that before. She grinned. "So while you're here with me thinking of all the reasons why you should feel so bad you don't go see him, he's probably looking forward to it again. Do you really want to let him down?"

"I don't want to let anyone down, but—"

"Go."

"I can't just-"

"Yes you can. So go."

"He's working!"

"It's called multitasking. Go."

Sakura opened her mouth, but her lips parted faster than any valid excuse could come to mind. With Naruto's abilities, multitasking was possible. As well as that, but she had nothing more to do. Sarada remained at her grandparent's house until tomorrow evening, she had already made the arrangement for her time off from the hospital, and her ammunition for avoiding Naruto again was ultimately dry. She had awoken early feeling warm as well as content with the days coming events. As unusual as it was for her, Sakura anticipated seeing Naruto after yesterday's fruitful conversation. Ino had been right so far, and if she walked away now she may never be able to face him again, not after telling him to his face she'd see him again so soon.

No further excuses to offer, Sakura took several gulps of her coffee until the cup in hand was completely drained. Setting it down gently, Sakura had quietly avoided Ino's eyes for several seconds until at last they had met again.

"You're right, it would be cruel if I didn't. But, what if he—"

"NO BUTS!" Ino shot up from her leaning position and stretched to place both hands on Sakura's shoulders, firmly locking her in place before lightly shaking her. "I finally get you to take some time off from work and spend time with me, but instead I end up changing everything you thought you knew about someone special to you. I felt guilty at first, but after I heard about how good a time you had with Naruto I knew that things were going to work out for you. If you want to hold on to the past then fine, but Naruto is ready to tackle the here and now, right?" Of course she was right, Sakura wasn't left to answer such an easy question. "You're friends, and whether you doubt that or not, he clearly doesn't!"

Ino had left her friend in shambles, beginning to doubt her own view of Naruto. In her mind she had always imagined him being livid at her, forcing her to question her own reason for seeing him after so much time spent apart. For what little Ino understood as to why Sakura had done it, all her effort was placed into repairing it. Her breath was caught in her throat as she recalled his smile yesterday, and with how natural they had spoken with one another it was becoming clear to Sakura that perhaps her anxiety was misplaced. Naruto wasn't angry, she was only trying to find some excuse to not face him again.

She knew why this was, and it was a matter in the past that was haunting her to this very day.

She would take that secret to her grave, allowing her life to have a turning point she should have begun long ago.

"Darn you," Sakura smiled weakly, "I can't win. You've got me, so I don't have a choice anymore, do I?"

Ino returned her smile, releasing her shoulders once she was certain that Sakura had finally understood what today could mean to her. After so long being reclusive, as well as working and maintaining a lifeless routine, seeing Naruto again could have the positive affect she was hoping for.

"You never did, Sakura. So, start blooming already …you've wilted long enough."

* * *

Early mornings sucked.

No matter how old he got, Shikamaru never could enjoy a morning where he wasn't sleeping in. This job of his had some good benefits: The satisfaction of aiding one of the most powerful men in the world was present, but at the cost of his hobbies which include doing anything that was working hard. As he made his way to the Hokage's place of work, he looked up to the clouds in the morning sky and had begun to rewind the clock in his mind. An hour ago he was beside his wife and snoozing peacefully, wrapped in her warmth and the sound of her breathing. Fifty nine minutes ago he was disturbed by the buzzing of his alarm and had to exit his sanctuary where 'work' was just a thought, and not the reality it was now.

He yawned loudly and shook his head, still feeling the tingling sensation of his wife's lips against his own after his departure. His son, Shikadai, did not know how good he had it. Weekends still meant something for children, but when you were a man like him it was nothing more than overtime. It wasn't how he expected his life would go.

"Oh well… we all have to grow up some day…" he would say sleepily under his breath. Another morning of reflection, and another morning wishing he was still in bed.

When he arrived in the building, Shikamaru had taken notice of something that didn't belong: Outside of Naruto's office was a carpet, black in color with small orange letters that had read 'Please wipe your feet-ttebayo!' on them. Two things had come to mind upon reading this. First: Since when had Naruto been all about wiping feet in an already messy office? Second: How did he get someone to put this together so quickly? Or …could it be that he already planned someone to put this together?

"That's …new." The Nara muttered quietly. Making the tough, tough decision to not in fact wipe his feet before entering, a couple knocks had been placed against the door before Shikamaru had entered, being met with the overwhelming scent of air freshener.

Before his eyes was Naruto, about five of him to be precise, completing various activities that involved cleaning throughout the office, with the sixth and presumably the real one sitting at his desk typing away furiously. The bookcase was being tended to by two of him, repeatedly adjusting the bookcase and making certain that the books were perfectly straightened. Aside from them, another was constantly sweeping the floor with a broom that had appeared recently purchased. The four Naruto was hovering beside the real Naruto's desk, examining its surface at eye-level. Once he was certain he saw a speck of dust on it, he had quickly rubbed it down with a rag before resuming his intense watch. As for the fifth, he was quickly spraying all the windows behind the real one, and rubbing them down with vigor—to his credit, Shikamaru could almost see his reflection from the door.

The real Naruto at work had looked up from his laptop, his focus shifting into a new, friendlier gear. "Hey, Shikamaru! Don't worry, I'm already hard at work. Did you like my carpet? I just got it made!"

"…What is this?" Shikamaru was in disbelief, although his face didn't show it. A clean desk with a refreshing fragrance, including a Naruto working harder than he had ever seen. "Did Shizune say something to you?"

"Eh?" Naruto crossed his arms and looked to the ceiling inquisitively, "Well, no, I haven't seen her for a few days. She's been filling in for Sakura-chan, so it's just been me so far today!"

"Okay, but that …doesn't explain what's happening here." Shikamaru's eyes had narrowed, once again scanning the room at the spectacle before him.

"Oh, this. I said I'd keep my office clean from now on, Sakura-chan was really ecstatic about it, we cleaned it together yesterday!" Naruto beamed as he returned to his work, "She said she was coming back today, so I thought I'd surprise her by showing her just how clean I can keep the place." Naruto's response was one full of pride and confidence, so much that Shikamaru almost couldn't tell him he might have been overdoing it.

"Don't you think you're overdoing it a little?"

Almost.

The Hokage was left to wonder what exactly Shikamaru meant by that. Glancing down to his desk, not a spot was to be found, and it was completely cleared of any miscellaneous items. Glancing behind him, the windows were cleaner than they'd ever been. Facing forward once more, he noted that the books along the bookcase were still in order, and were now being dusted. That left the clone that swept, and if Naruto knew himself, then Naruto knew that there wasn't a speck of dirt to be found. "…I don't see what you mean, Shikamaru. Did you hate the carpet idea?"

"It's not the carpet, Naruto, it's just that—"

Three knocks to the wall beside the door, and a pink-haired woman both familiar and beautiful as always stepped in. "Sorry, am I interrupting?" she would ask. Like Shikamaru, Sakura was taking in the sight of multiple Naruto's with various means of cleaning going to work, but all had frozen once they had registered Sakura by voice and by physical form.

Naruto's face had lit up like one wouldn't believe. Naruto stood up, and his clones had stood a little straighter than before, but all were smiling with childlike excitement.

"Not at all, good morning!" Naruto and the clones responded in unison, bringing Sakura to appear pleased before confusion had returned.

"So …I see you took what I said very literally."

"Of course, I made a promise to you." Naruto stepped around his desk. With his clones completing their tasks, they had all hurriedly stepped out of the room to return the various cleaning supplies taken from the utility closet. Left with both Sakura and Shikamaru alone again, Naruto extended his arms and invited Sakura to observe the environment. "As you know, I keep my promises, so I'm going to keep it clean for us." Left with a question, Naruto clapped his hands together, "And what did you think about the carpet?"

"It was …uh …" Reading his face, Sakura looked to Shikamaru for assistance, but the advisor had none. Truth be told, he appeared a little entertained, especially since he wasn't the one Naruto was trying to impress. Her eyes returned on Naruto, laughing a little in discomfort with the validity of Naruto's efforts riding on her word alone. "It's charming …but I think you might have overdone it a little."

Naruto hung his head in defeat, but Sakura was quick to offer more praise, "It beats the smell of stale cup ramen and it's never looked so good. It's all thanks to you that the place looks as good as it does now, so cheer up." Sakura leaned her body back, eyes closing and cheeks tightening with some expression of superiority. Her word meant something here, it would only be a lie if she said that it didn't feel good to make him happy. "And I think the carpet was a great idea, but how about we revisit its use at a later time? This new, cleaner Naruto might intimidate people. You want to make them comfortable in your office, not tense, right?"

His head shot back up quickly, having considered her words with haste. Perhaps the fear of treading a little dirt in his office might cause some sort of panic, and because Sakura had some experience maintaining an office of her own, her opinion held even more value. Nodding twice, Naruto was in complete agreement. "Good idea, yeah, I'll take it easy!"

Shikamaru could tell his relevance was dwindling by each moment. With how focused Naruto was on Sakura, it was almost as if his presence was entirely irrelevant here, and that wouldn't do. It was his job to keep him up to date on all comings and goings in the village. Troublesome as the role was, it was the role he had chosen for himself. Clearing his throat to get the attention of the pair, Shikamaru pocketed both his hands and returned the topic to the tasks ahead of them. "Not that I'm not happy that this place is cleaned up, but you've got work to do. I've dealt with the tensions between those traders, but that still leaves a lot to deal with."

Running over the necessities that Naruto had to complete as Lord Seventh, the one task that stood out to him was participation in a tradition of the Hokage before him. Overseeing a history lesson and offering words to the next generation to come, but it wasn't a task he had to do alone.

"You understand?" Shikamaru asked, replied by Naruto with a small nod of the head. Returning to his desk, Naruto had taken a seat to get back to work, his brow creased with thought. Just before Sakura could move to make a little conversation with him, Shikamaru jerked his head towards the door while giving her eye contact. The pair had stepped outside, and Naruto had looked up from his laptop to see Sakura raise her finger, giving him the signal that she would only be gone for a short time. He could use the moment to get back into work mode.

Shikamaru was the first to speak the moment the door had been closed. "I don't really know what that was about, but I should probably thank you for motivating him like that."

"What, the cleaning? Well, I was in the area yesterday and it was a mess—"

"I just mean coming around. It might be hard to believe, but with as much enthusiasm as he has with being Hokage he still has days where he looks more exhausted than I do. Things come up, and his son doesn't really help matters." Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck and averted his eyes to the door. It was troublesome to talk about family issues that weren't his own. Shikadai could be a pain in his own way, but it was a family trait to be unmotivated and not even his mother, overbearing as she was, could change that. The difference between Shikadai and Bolt was that Shikadai wasn't causing trouble for the village as a whole. "I shouldn't be talking about it because it isn't my place, but …stick around, would you? I've got some more work to take care of before I can even think of finding a place to nap for a few hours, and as we both saw he has some determination to work a lot harder when you're around."

Sakura had remain hushed. Her thoughts ran to Bolt, who Sarada was not exactly fond of due to his arrogance. Even so, she was always drawn to following his moves against Naruto. The two were drastically different in the area of academic ability, but Sarada mentioned seeing something quite similar. What they both shared, what they both lacked, were faith in their fathers. Motivating Naruto was a good thing and whenever she was with him, she always did feel like she could accomplish amazing feats. Being more than a doctor, a disciple of Lady Tsunade, meant a lot.

"Okay, "Sakura agreed, "leave it to me. I'll be sticking around more, I think we could both use each other's help, if I'm being honest."

Shikamaru and Sakura both exchanged small words of thanks for the others time. As he left the building, Sakura placed her hand on the doorknob and froze. Peering down at her feet, she slightly parted her feet to read Naruto's carpet captions. A small moment of appreciation was had; even after all his growing up, there was still a small measure of a lovable idiot inside him behind that mature exterior and masculine physique. Stepping back inside, Sakura closed the door and moved to the desk just as Naruto leaned back in his seat, staring at the ceiling in thought.

"Sorry about that, Shikamaru needed a second to talk." Sakura joined Naruto behind his desk, but kept her back to the laptop. The matters of the Hokage were for him and him alone. "

"Will you do that speech with me?" For a Hokage, Naruto's voice was frail and almost fearful of what he was saying.

Sakura directed her attention to him, "For the kids?"

"Yeah, I could use you there."

"What could I possibly talk about?" Sakura laughed a little at the thought of her offering some great, amazing speech for the next generation. "No one wants to be like me, they want to be like you. The boy who became Hokage and saved the world."

"I didn't do it alone, I had people help me get here," Naruto leaned forward and stood up, "and don't forget that you were one of them. So, what do you say?"

Sakura could tell that he really meant for her to do this, but for all the confidence Ino had helped give her earlier she was still hesitant about her increased involvement, "What about Hinata?"

"I considered that while you were out, but it got me really thinking about our story."

Sakura raised an eyebrow, "Our story?"

Naruto nodded, smiling timidly, "Yeah, we've come a long way together. Neither of us really had much talent in the beginning, but hard work and people to support us have gotten us to where we are. I don't doubt that Hinata could do well with me, but you'd offer more strength to what I would say. Not to mention we've seen what we can do, so we can vouch for what the other had accomplished." Naruto turned his back on his desk and rested against it just beside her, eyes to the window. "If you said no, I'll understand. It would just be nice to…"

"To feel like …a team again?"

Naruto returned his focus to Sakura who had offered him the same attention. He didn't expect her to understand what he had meant, yet here she was finishing his sentences. "Y-yeah …it's been …well—"

"Different, I know." Sakura looked away, afraid her shame would wash over her the longer she gazed on his face. She wasn't going to run away from him, instead she'd face this as best she could. "I'm sorry about …about everything, Naruto. I know you might think that you can't blame me for what I did to us, and our friendship, but I accepted responsibility for it a long time ago. No matter what you say about it now, I'm the one at fault, and I won't let you put it on yourself." She fought her cowardice, attention firmly returning to his. Their eyes locked, Sakura's holding fire, and Naruto's holding joy. "I'm here now, and …yesterday was one of the best days I've had in a long time. It's sudden, but I'd really like to fight this guilt in my heart and try to move on from my mistakes. If you'll forgive me, I want try to return to the way we used to be."

In his heart Naruto wanted to accept Sakura's admittance of guilt, but even more than that he wanted to convince her that he was ready for this, and had been ready for the last several years. It wasn't a matter of forgiving Sakura, it was now a matter of figuring out why they had to have this conversation to begin with. What had brought the rift between them had been a mystery for such a long time. Even if Sakura seemed to have all the details she needed, he was still in the dark about it. He couldn't pretend that this conversation wasn't growing much more important than it had before. This was the opportunity he needed to ask something he's wanted to know for a very long time, and he wouldn't allow it to pass him by.

"Sakura-chan, could I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

He paused and swallowed, a lump forming in his throat. A question that could either mend them, or ruin them again, but he had to know for sure.

"Did I hurt you?" Naruto's voice was full of sorrow and intrigue, catching Sakura off guard instantaneously. The brightness of his eyes was reduced by the narrowing of his eyes, the gaze moving to the floor beneath the two. "Back then, I always wondered if I did it …if I had ruined us somehow. When I wasn't with Hinata or anyone else I would just sit somewhere and think about what I could have done to make you want to stay away from me. If I tried to push, you'd pull away, and if I tried to reach out for you …you wouldn't reach back. It was painful…"

Every part of Sakura wanted to cry out and tell him no, but she continued to listen if only because she had spent so long neglecting him. He was giving her what was really in his heart all this time, and to interrupt him now would be unforgivable. Naruto deserved this, and Sakura was willing to give it to him, no matter how much it was hurting her to hear this.

"I didn't want to cripple our bond, but everything I tried to do for you didn't matter …you didn't acknowledge me anymore. It was almost as if I was a kid again, at a time where everyone shunned me." His body shuddered as he spoke, and Sakura was all too familiar with that sign of sadness. Her own eyes burned as tears were fought back, but she'd hold on, just a little more…

"I had to accept that I did something wrong, and that you might never have forgiven me for it. If I could see you again, if we could have talked, I was asking myself what I could have said or done for you to want to spend time with me again …and out of the blue you came back in my life. I was really happy yesterday, too." He was smiling in spite of his shuddering, and had even managed to laugh quietly. "I was so happy that I had forgotten about that pain …more than anything I just wanted you to be able to count on me again, and to spend time like we used to. So even if it was just for a little while, I wanted to experience what it was like for you to be my friend again. Maybe …maybe I'm just being selfish about it, but I want you to know how much it means to me that you came back again, because if you didn't, I may never have forgiven myself for—"

Naruto's breath was lost, his body now tightly embraced by the one who had brought this situation. Without noticing it, Naruto had begun sobbing moments ago but continued to speak as if he was still just talking, but for Sakura, who was forced to watch as he broke down bit by bit, it had become too much to bear. She had surrendered her space in order to be closer to him than she had been in ten years. Out of all regrets, past and present, this was one that was tearing at her the most: Naruto suffered as a result of what she had to do, what she had carried on her shoulders all this time, and she was entirely blind to what it was doing to him. It never left him, and she was too much of a coward to hear just how much she had broken him inside. The tears that flowed stained his torso, and muffles cries were made by just how close she wanted to be to his heart. Naruto, still caught by surprise with her suddenly embrace, finally snapped out of his stunned silence in order to bring his arms around her back and comfort her.

The gesture said enough. Pain was acknowledged, accepted, and most of all they both wanted this.

It had been several minutes before Sakura's cries had dwindled down to silent sniffles, and Naruto's tears had been able to cease flowing. Neither dared to let go first, but it was Sakura who had chosen to speak first.

"Don't blame yourself anymore …do you understand me, Naruto?" While her body shook, her voice was firm and unmistakably commanding. "This wasn't you …it was never your fault, it never was …so …get that through your thick skull …okay?"

"…Yeah." Naruto gently rested his chin against her head, trying his best to feel the beating of her heart with his. In spite of a wife whom he loved dearly, holding Sakura like this was cathartic. So much time spent believing he was the cause of his own pain, and here Sakura was telling him otherwise. He could tell that they were both at their lowest points, which made masks very impossible to maintain. Sakura was telling him the truth. He wasn't the one to blame. "Can you at least …tell me why?"

Sakura's teeth were grit, her grasp noticeably tightening at the request. There was all the reason to tell Naruto what all of this was for, but the truth would crush him much more than his years of questioning himself would. He deserved to know what it was about, why she had brought this on him and why she had stood by as he felt the weight of a burden that she intended to bear on her own. Suffering through this mission was never meant to wound anyone but herself, and here she was holding one of the people closest to her that suffered the most. Ino missed her. Naruto wept because of her. It seemed as if she could do nothing right but harm others.

"…I can't, Naruto …not yet…" Sakura's voice strained. Her throat was beginning to burn even worse than her eyes.

"Is it …at least over? What's troubled you about me all this time?" He asked quietly, shutting his eyes.

Sakura couldn't find it in her to respond to that, instead focusing on his warmth, scent, and just how secure she felt in his grasp. It was the safest she had felt in so long, a luxury that she never could afford anymore, nor deserved. She had wondered for just a single, fleeting moment if he'd let her go had she told the truth about everything. Someday she might have the answer to that, but for now she wanted to let this moment last a little longer. They'd return to their lives shortly, except they'd leave this room as friends again. After so long, it had been incredible to walk beside him again. She'd want more days and nights like that, if she could have them. The subject would need to be changed to something a little more trivial.

"I'm sorry …I got your shirt wet." Sakura raised her head to look at him, eyes red but softened after the much needed release of emotions. What she looked up to see was Naruto appearing at peace. Expecting a face twisted with pain, she wasn't prepared to find that he looked happy after all of this. When his eyes opened again it was concern and some semblance of happiness within, not the pain and doubt that she had to see just minutes before.

"It's nice, so I don't mind it..."

"…The damp shirt?" Sakura asked, resting her forehead against his chest again, emotions exhausting her. "Why?"

"It's not the shirt I'm talking about, Sakura-chan." Voice barely above a whisper, Naruto stopped talking and left Sakura to put together the meaning for herself.

The office was without noise, and this moment had gone from seconds, to minutes, until they had stopped bothering to count how long they stood there holding one another. Neither of them had said it, but they had both known that in spite of whatever happiness their everyday lives might have brought them – whether occasional or rare – that something had been missing.

This friendship, this bond they shared, was no longer just a memory. They were real again.

* * *

**A/N - This chapter originally wasn't meant to be so angst-filled, but as I wrote I believed it probably better that Naruto ask the questions now so they can move forward easier. This was also the debut of my first attempt at using Taka-characters, as well as Sasuke, so go easy please ^^''. With that said, I'd like to give a big thank you to those who are enjoying the content thus far, and have favorited the story despite two measly chapters until this point. I would also like to express some serious gratitude to the kind reviews left by several individuals. **

** Canon May Care - I was really giddy when I read your review and you know how to make a guy feel really good about himself. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave that review, and I'm glad I could impress you. It's my goal to treat the girls with much more respect than their creator, and I hope not to let anyone down when they continue to interact as this story progresses. I hope you continue to be a fan!**

** Brooklynboy96, The Dark End, arsenalfan99, animeficfan, onepieceloverforever, Beast Mode 01, great story, - Thanks a ton for the support guys, it really means a lot to me. **

** sushi95 - I'm taking my time with this. If I wanted mindless sex, I'd write a lemon rather than an ongoing story. Hope to keep having your support!**

** Guest who said "Ino's a bitch." - I hope she's not a bitch in this chapter!**

**All right, that'll be it for now. Thanks again for the reviews, the favorites, and the follows. Nothing makes me happier than knowing this story has prompted the readers to do at least one of those three things, and I hope you'll all stick with me on this journey!**


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N** \- Review responses will always be at the end of a chapter. I feel like I made a lot of mistakes while posting this, so please don't judge too harshly. This chapter was a nightmare to produce, and I think I need to some time gather my thoughts. Hope you enjoy. _

* * *

_"So, what's it feel like?"_

_"What do you mean, 'what does it feel like?'… He doesn't have an arm."_

_"That's what I mean, Ino!"_

_Sakura had quietly entered inside to find that Naruto was not alone. Jugo mentioning too many guests to one room had made much more sense now – not only was the bed-ridden Naruto here, but the majority of their friends, too. Tucked in a corner very similar to Sasuke, the hero of the Fourth Great Ninja War was sitting upward appearing quite satisfied at the spectacle in front of him. With a majority of the backs turned to her, Sakura had gone unnoticed. Leaning her back against the doorway, she waited for an opportunity to announce herself. For now she was content seeing Naruto doing well, if you looked past the numerous bandages that stretched across his body and the stump that once had a fully functioning arm, that is._

_"If he has no arm then what's it supposed to feel like? And besides that, it's a little insensitive to be asking something like that so soon." Ino, in spite of her recent loss, appeared to be returning to her normal self. With the conclusion of the war, everyone had returned to civilian outfits. Some bruises remained and scars still needed time to heal, but for the most part the medical teams had accomplished the job of keeping everyone healthy. Judging from Ino's dauntless posture and attitude, it seemed that most of them – if not all – were nearing their full health once again. "Did you even consider how Naruto might feel?"_

_"Yeah, right," Kiba's tone took a sarcastic turn, eyes wandering towards Naruto, "the guy who saved the world is suddenly too sensitive for any one of us to ask about his new handicap. Am I going too far, Naruto?"_

_The attention moved to Naruto who smiled wide enough that baring his teeth was unavoidable. From this distance, between the backs of Ino and Kiba, Sakura could see the aura of joy radiating from that roughed up face of his. The evidence of his battle with Sasuke were still noticeably present, but the swelling had gone down considerably since then. Being the jinchuuriki of "Kurama", as she had come to know of the Nine-Tailed Fox's true name, definitely had its perks._

_"It's just something I'll need to get used to for the time being. But it's definitely strange," his eyes wandered to his stump now, a physical memento of his final battle, "waking up and seeing this …it just serves as a reminder that—"_

_Something caught his eye. How he hadn't seen it before, that familiar, beautiful girl nestled away near the door was unknown to him. His senses might have been a little dulled due to his recovery process, yet the reaction was always the same. Sakura was here, and looking right back at him. For a brief moment he was stunned, only because he hadn't managed to hear her come in, or even see her. The entertainment value of Kiba and Ino was underestimated._

_"Sakura-chan, you're back!" He finally spoke again, resulting in everyone within the room to look towards her, either over the shoulders or directly forward again. Everyone had voiced their greetings, even Akamaru with a sharp bark._

_Sakura smiled either out of genuine joy or embarrassment at all the attention coming to her now. Ino reacted before anyone else could, moving to hug Sakura tightly._

_"Sakura, why didn't you say you were here?" Ino had asked first._

_A decision hadn't been made. Seeing Sasuke like that hadn't helped her come to a decision about what to do, and it hung over her head to the point where she'd rather be anywhere but here. Just a couple hours ago she was beside Naruto and Sasuke both, believing that everything they had all suffered for was in the past. Starting over wasn't a dream. Here she was standing now, in the face of Ino, Naruto and the rest of their friends just struggling to keep it together. They had no idea what was going on, leaving Sakura to become envious of that ignorance._

_"Well …you and Kiba were having so much fun that I didn't have the heart to interrupt." Sakura half-lied. If she were being honest, it was a small yet welcome change of pace to focus more on the bickering of a couple friends than her own decisions._

_"Perhaps Kiba might have smelled your approach, were he not so preoccupied with Naruto's condition. Why?" Shino had blended well in the background, and had been so silent that he had noticeably startled Tenten once he actually began to interact. "Because—"_

_"Who asked you, Shino?" Kiba scowled, glancing down at Akamaru who rested beside him. "Akamaru and I don't just sniff for people all day, and it's not like it's a surprise to find her here to begin with. Back to my original point—"_

_"So," Ino pulled Sakura aside, choosing to abandon the discussion with Kiba and instead focus on other matters, "call me crazy, but I think that guy next door was checking me out earlier."_

_"What guy?" Sakura lowered her voice with Ino's, thankful that Kiba's desire to be heard had made it nearly impossible for anyone else to pick up on it. With Ino she could abandon her anxiousness about her new knowledge. It wasn't as if she could have a comfortable situation with Naruto as of now anyway, and from the corner of her eye she could tell that he was enjoying the company of everyone else to begin with._

_"The guy with the sword, what was his name again? Sangotsu?"_

_"Suigetsu."_

_"Yeah, that!" Ino snapped her fingers with a loud pop. "Before we were asked to move, I felt his eyes on me. So I looked at him, and he looked right back without even flinching. Talk about hot!"_

_Confidence was always a trait Ino could appreciate, especially when it came to someone she saw herself being with. Whether she was attractive to Suigetsu's physical body or just his attitude went unanswered. Asking wasn't any trouble, but there was a part of Ino that Sakura remembered her losing. Beneath her enthusiasm she had begun to wonder about how she might really be feeling underneath all the enthusiasm._

_"Ino, how are you?"_

_Ino was caught off guard at Sakura's question. "Hm? I'm fine."_

_"No, I mean, how are you really? Not just in front of me, and everyone else." Sakura eased into this as carefully as possible, hoping not to trigger an emotional outburst of any kind. Ino was strong, stronger than most, but with the loss she had to endure recently it wasn't strange of her to begin asking this question._

_Three days had passed since they had moved from the battlefield. Wounded still being tended to, but the easier cases such as everyone in here were easily dismissed to nothing more than bed rest and limited physical activity for the next several days if they could manage it. Much time had been spent with Naruto and Sasuke. After personally requesting she be one of the few to oversee their recovery, there had been little time outside of this building other than to head home and sleep. What this meant was that Ino had to be without her for a little while. As pleasant as it had been to see that Ino appeared to be her normal, flirtatious self, Sakura feared it was just a front._

_"It's only been three days. The fact that everyone is up and walking again after that level of physical stress is incredible enough, but I know that some wounds are …are going to take so much longer to heal." Ino's expression fell, and Sakura almost regret bringing it up, "I want you to know that I'm here for you. If you need to talk, or cry, anything at all, then you come to me and I'll be there for you. And I'd just like to say that I'm sorry that—"_

_"Sakura, don't," Ino held up a hand to silence her, managing a smile even in the middle of a conversation such as this, "I'm doing better. Shikamaru and I …we're getting ourselves through it together. The worst thing is trying to console mom, but it gets a little easier each day. You're a medic and a lot more people need you than I do right now, namely our own hero over there."_

_Ino looked to Naruto, and Sakura's eyes had followed. The conversation of the main group had progressed from Kiba's interest in Naruto's stump, to what sounded like dinner plans. Choji was adamant about barbecue, while Shikamaru had insisted that no particular place mattered as long as the bill was evenly split. Hinata had politely requested that they go to somewhere with more options for a balanced meal, and Naruto had recommended Ichiraku's._

_"You and your ramen, Naruto. There's more to life than that!" Kiba argued. "Besides, barbecue isn't that bad, and we all need to come to a decision that we all benefit from. If Hinata doesn't prefer barbecue, then we need a place that offers a little of what we all want."_

_"I agree!" Lee nodded. "On the subject of a nice meal out, I suggest we earn it. How about—"_

_"No." Tenten interrupted curtly._

_Lee looked at her, puzzled. "But I haven't even explained my idea yet."_

_The eyes of the weapon specialist narrowed. She had known Lee well enough to expect what was going to come next. Earning meals, earning luxuries, it all came with hard-work and sweat. The war was over, but her muscles were still screaming at her day in and day out. Lee was different from the rest of them; she was a part of the hard-working regime of Gai, which meant she was the voice of reason. Letting him down easy was the intention._

_"Fine, Lee, but if it has anything to do with exercising then I suggest you rethink it. We could all use a year-long vacation after everything…"_

_Overcoming his physical limitations time and time again was in his nature, but Tenten's words held some wisdom. While he might have recovered to an acceptable level of physical health, he wasn't taking into account how everyone else might have felt. "You are right, Tenten." Lee agreed. "Maybe it is for the best that we all take it easy, at least for the time being."_

_"Give me some time, bushy-brows, and I'll join you." Naruto responded to Lee, but his eyes had wandered towards Sakura in the back, "If Sakura-chan's in charge of me, then I shouldn't be here for much longer. It's thanks to her and the other medical staff that we're all doing as well as we are."_

_Sakura was temporarily stunned, not just because of his compliment but how he looked at her when he said it. His injuries didn't hinder his ability to make her feel appreciated for her efforts. She and the staff worked around the clock both during the war and at its very conclusion. It was good to be recognized for the blood, sweat and tears that came from this job. A thank you was in order, but a certain big-boned friend had decided to voice his confusion._

_"Has anyone seen my fruit basket?" Choji cut in, scratching his head as he looked around. "I swear I had it ten minutes ago…"_

* * *

It was funny how a matter as simple as a trading dispute could hang over one's head. A disagreement turned into an open conflict, and from that conflict came destruction of goods. Yesterday, neither party had won because of it. The world was peaceful, but incidents as insignificant as that were a reminder of how quickly people could turn on one another.

As Kazekage, Gaara had a great deal of pride in the people of Suna, and it was because of that that he could not believe that something so embarrassing could happen with some of his own. The situation was resolved swiftly, but staring blankly at the screen of his laptop he had let his thoughts become rooted to that moment in time. Kankuro had told him to put it behind him, and it was time to do so, but the role of Kage often meant you look back to moments like this to prevent further incident. He loved his brother without question, yet Kankuro was likely unable to grasp what this meant. A tranquil world where all five great villages were working together was here, disturbed now by a small ripple. All it took was one ripple to disturb an entire mass, and the consequences could be considerable if they were not careful. The only people that were able to completely understand that now were Kage.

A couple knocks at the door had shifted his gaze beyond his laptop.

"Come in," Gaara responded, unsurprised to find that it was his elder brother at the door. Dressed in his usual attire, the Kazekage was surprised that there were no items of importance on him.

"Hey, it's just about lunch time. If I were you, I wouldn't keep Matsuri waiting." Kankuro crossed his arms, "Are you sitting here looking gloomy again?"

"I was just thinking about something insignificant."

"Not the trade fiasco again." Kankuro scoffed, "Gaara, I told you, these things are going to happen. The world isn't going to go to war over the petty squabble of a couple of tradesman. There's no use in worrying about it."

Gaara stood up from his seat slowly, hands firmly planted on the desk, "It's my job to worry about every possible outcome. I worry so no one else has to, you know that just as Matsuri does."

"It's been handled. Normally I condone your paranoia, but it's becoming a little ridiculous." The elder brother shrugged his shoulders. Gaara was a capable leader who had won the heart of his people, not to mention their loyalty. The traders have moved on; the discipline was dealt, the merchandise recovered, and the only one worried about it now was him. "Have some lunch and you'll forget about it. Just keep your fears in the office, I can't really deal with the tension in the room when both of you are moping."

Matsuri, his wife, had always found herself closely bonded to him. If he was angry, she often became angry as well. If he was sad, she too became sad. It was a connection found a couple years after the war, after the events of a great battle that nearly demanded the moon be destroyed. She was a good woman and a reliable shinobi. The last thing he wanted to do was make her concerned over something like this.

"Naruto and I have worked very hard, so for something like this to happen between our villages is embarrassing to say the least. I know it seems foolish, but I haven't gotten this far as Kazekage by being careless."

Before Kankuro would respond, a loud notification had rang from Gaara's laptop. Peering downward, a rectangular box had appeared which read, 'Incoming call from – Naruto Uzumaki'.

"Naruto is calling. Tell Matsuri I'll be right down, and that I apologize."

"Like she'll complain. We'll wait." Kankuro had left, closing the door behind him.

Leaving Gaara once again alone in his office, he had sat back down and accepted the call. What came through his speakers wasn't the pleasant greeting of an old friend, but instead the sounds of scolding by a familiar medic.

* * *

"Naruto, he could be busy, hang it up!"

"You're sounding like Shikamaru, Sakura-chan!"

"Because Shikamaru is responsible, and I'm the most responsible between us, aren't I?"

"Hey, I'm not as irresponsible as I used to be!"

"You just called him without any warning – didn't you just tell me that this was for emergencies?"

"Yeah, but its Gaara, he won't get mad!"

Sakura scoffed, inwardly smiling at Naruto's impulsive behavior, being reminded all too well of how he rarely looked before he leapt when they were just kids.

A few hours had passed since the embracing of one another. What they could conclude was that they needed to adjust to one another again. Time had been spent just working up the ability to speak again, hitting it off almost immediately once topics were shifted. From pain, to work, to friends, to how good it was to finally be able to try to move on. Naruto didn't ask many questions and respected her desire to reveal everything when the time was most appropriate for her. Sakura's admission of guilt had been a start, but she was a long ways away from the absolute finish. This burden was something she'd need to bear a little while longer. This was the process she might be bold enough to call healing, giving time for the wound to heal.

Given the kind of man Naruto had always been, the medical expert knew that he would want to be the one that cleaned the wound and bandaged it as well.

Naruto left Sakura to wait just a moment, making certain that Gaara had accepted his call before trying to speak.

"Hey, Gaara, are you there?"

"I'm here. Is that Sakura with you?"

Sakura was still impressed with how far advancements in appliances and overall technology had come. Gaara's voice was coming through the laptop similarly to a phone, quality unhindered by long-distance.

"Y-yeah, it's me. It's good to hear from you Gaara." Okay, she could admit that this was pretty neat, but what Naruto had bragged about earlier had yet to be displayed. "I actually expected an image of you, since knucklehead over here kept talking about me being able to see you."

"One moment," Naruto's screen had flickered black for a moment, but quickly returned with the full screen image of the Kazekage himself, appearing quite pleased with himself, "is that better?"

"Hey, yeah, that's pretty neat!" Sakura responded, enthralled.

"Sakura didn't believe me when I said I could reach you at the press of a button. She doesn't even know all the features of her phone yet."

Naruto's bravado had quickly cost him. Gaara had noticed first that her eyes had narrowed towards him in a playful, yet dangerous fashion. Then had come the reaching towards his left cheek, followed by a sharp pinch that forced Naruto to yelp in pain.

"Don't start showing off in front of him, and it's not my fault that they come out with updated models every few months, is it?" Sakura grumbled, her grip on Naruto as powerful as she was frightening.

"S-S-S-Sakura-chan, that's painful—"

"Is it, Naruto!?" Sakura repeated, tugging his cheek harder and stretching his face to a comical, realistic limit.

"N-no, of course not!"

"Good!" Sakura released him, patting his cheek twice before Naruto had quickly favored it with his palm, eyes watery. "Besides, I bet Gaara can hardly keep up with all the new releases anyway, even if he_ is_ Kazekage. Am I right?" Sakura looked to Gaara's face, finding him staring at the colorful pair before his eyes. "Gaara?"

"Oh, man! Tell me this thing didn't freeze!" Naruto sighed in annoyance, waving his hand in front of it and expecting the laptop to suddenly unfreeze itself.

"Sorry, it's just…it's been quite a long time since I've managed to see you two together. Not since the wedding, I believe. I'm feeling nostalgic." Gaara's voice was quiet. Instead of worries about merchant squabbles and the well-being of those in Suna, he was brought back to a time when he once called Naruto an enemy, a time where once Sakura stood to defend a comrade, and a time where they both had worked to save his life from the threat of Akatsuki. "It's something, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but …minus a couple differences, I always knew I'd end up here." Naruto scratched his cheek – the one that wasn't on fire, anyway.

"I never had any doubt about that. I hate to cut our conversation short, but my wife and brother are waiting to get some lunch with me. Give your family my best regards, Naruto."

"Of course, tell the others the same!"

Gaara nodded, "And Sakura, it's good to see you after so long."

"Yeah, you too Gaara."

Gaara had ended the call between them, prompting Naruto to stand up and stretch. Sakura was left to head for the door, with Naruto closing his laptop and walking after her. A plan to grab lunch was already made an hour ago, but Naruto had insisted they give Gaara a hello first. As the pair of them left the office together and exchanged pleasant words about Gaara, something related to that discussion was still hanging in her head.

"What did you mean, when you said that there were a couple of differences about your position?" Sakura asked as they both took to the streets, towards Ichiraku.

"Hm? Oh …it's Bolt." Naruto's enthusiastic demeanor had taken a sharp turn to one of sullenness, which didn't go unnoticed by his companion. "I never thought I'd have a son who resented me so much. Ever since I've become Hokage, I've had less time to dedicate to him and Himawari."

Sakura was relating to Naruto's issues, but unfortunately couldn't pretend she fully understood the position. Sarada never expected Sakura to be anything but busy for most activities, yet Sakura never got the impression that Sarada hated her for it.

"Himawari," Sakura directed the conversation to Naruto and Hinata's precious little girl, "how does she feel about the whole situation?"

"She's understanding. Hinata helped put it together for her that what I do involves me taking care of a lot more people now, and even though I might be busy it wouldn't change the fact that I'll always be there when she needs me."

"But Bolt doesn't agree?"

"He doesn't believe me, that's the problem." Naruto brought his hands behind his head, eyes raised towards the sky. "I get upset when he acts out for me, because I know what it's like to want someone to acknowledge you. Himawari doesn't resent me for it, but Bolt isn't Himawari, and I can't expect them to feel the same way about it. So, instead of being my son's hero, I'm just a 'shitty father' to him now."

Sakura's immediate questions went towards Hinata, but she chose to hesitate on that. Hinata was likely doing the best she could, and it was Naruto that was being hurt, just as Bolt was. "But …Naruto, wait a second. You can create clones. Doesn't that solve the feeling of neglect?"

Naruto looked to Sakura, "I've tried it, and it's not good enough for him. It's always felt uncomfortable knowing that while I'm working, he's playing with a clone."

Sakura could identify the pain in Naruto's tone, having become familiar with it just a couple hours prior to now.

"Sarada's been asking about Sasuke more and more," Sakura didn't mean to place priority on her own problems, but instead let Naruto know that his son and her daughter were more alike than he might know, "and I'm running out of excuses to tell her. If I have to face her again without being able to tell her where he is and what he's doing, I'm not sure what I'll do. I can't keep lying to her like this." She smiled, but it was one of unmistakable sadness, "She's always been so intelligent for her age, so I shouldn't be this surprised. The bluntness of her father."

Naruto hadn't see Sarada in some time, but from what he remembered of her personally she was impressionable. The complete opposite of Bolt, Sarada had never come off as quite so arrogant, but when it came to her parentage no one could really blame her for it. Sakura had her share of concerns for Sarada, and he had his own with Bolt to worry about.

"For a couple friends that haven't talked together in such a long time, we manage to have the same problems." Naruto laughed a little. Maybe it was irony at work, but while things were pressing between them as parents he could not help but be a little thrilled at what could come. A second chance not only with Sakura, but maybe Sarada on top of that. "Sakura-chan, let's take her with us!"

"Hm? Are you sure?" Sakura wasn't opposed to having lunch with Sarada. Naruto still had some responsibilities at the office, holding him up wasn't going to be something she'd like to be responsible for. "We can swing by my parents and pick her up. Did you want to go grab Bolt, too?"

"He's with his friends today, so I doubt he'd want to leave just for me. There's always another time to bring him along."

Naruto appeared to be more than willing to do this, leaving Sakura unable to argue. "Okay then, but I'm going to warn you now …mom and dad have this habit of holding people up."

"It's no problem. I haven't seen them in a while, so we'll make the best of it!"

* * *

Sarada peered up from her book, looking towards her grandfather at the far end of the table. He had been scribbling down notes as grandmother worked on their lunch. The purpose was always the same: Make her laugh. Despite what other kids might have thought at the academy, she had a good sense of humor. Her grandfather knew that she could be made to laugh, yet as time passed and his granddaughter grew older, so did the challenge of making her clutch her sides in hysterical joy. It was becoming harder to enjoy the story knowing he was plotting just across from her, and when she was about to resume her reading she had been startled by her grandfather snapping his fingers.

"Okay, I've got a couple new ones!" Kizashi Haruno brimmed with confidence. "So sweetheart, what time did the shinobi go to the dentist?"

Tooth-hurty.

Sarada wasn't a stranger to her grandfather's jokes, but the amount of effort he was putting into this was making her cringe. Her mother always said to just let him win, but that was impossible for her. He wouldn't work harder unless he was challenged, and if she kept challenging him he wouldn't stop working. No matter how much her shoulders grew tense and her face flushed at these corny jokes, she couldn't just let herself lose.

"…Grandpa—"

"It's okay if you don't know, I won't look down on you! We all need to admit defeat sometime." Kizashi was proud of himself for this one, yet he triggered Sarada's competitive side, sealing his fate.

"Tooth-hurty." Sarada finally said, closing her book and setting it down in triumph.

"Oooh! That was a good one honey!" Mebuki Haruno – grandmother to Sarada – praised from the kitchen. It encouraged Kizashi, but he was still staring down the greatest opponent he had ever faced.

"Thanks sweetheart, but I need to beat Sarada! She's too good!" Kizashi responded.

"Well of course she is, she's our granddaughter, and intellect runs in the family!" Mebuki had entered the dining room carrying a couple plates of curry. Her husband had found a worthy foe in his grandchild, providing both entertainment and cuteness out of the competition between them. Setting down a plate in front of Kizashi, Mebuki set the second down and placed her hands firmly on her hips. Kizashi wasn't sure what to admire most: Was it the delicious curry his wife had created with unrivaled experience and care, or the fact that even in an apron she still looked amazing after all these years?

Age had come, but it didn't wear down the spirits of the Haruno family. Sarada may have had her reservations about her grandparents' nature, yet it was refreshing compared to how quiet home usually was.

"It smells great – I bet you could knock the Akimichi off their feet with their own recipe, honey!"

"Oh, stop buttering me up and try it!"

"Well, I would …but I need to earn it first!" Kizashi leaned in closer towards Sarada across the table, careful to avoid staining his clothes and notes with his wife's meal. "Now then: What did one plate say to the other?"

Sarada resisted cringing, managing to recover by shrugging her shoulders.

"So you give up?" Kizashi's eyes sparkled, hoping for victory.

"Well, it's about lunchtime …grandma made lunch," Sarada glanced upward, expression thoughtful, "I guess the answer is, "Lunch is on me" …right?" She peered back down as Kizashi's joyful expression turned to one of comedic defeat, head hanging.

"You see? She doesn't even need to try!" Kizashi whimpered. Mebuki chuckled and gently massaged her husband's shoulder.

The sound of the front door opening had caught their attention, and Sarada left her seat. Quickly brushing her skirt, she went to the front door to find her mother and -

"Lord Hokage?" Sarada recognized Naruto easily. If not for the fact he was obviously wearing the cloak of the Hokage mantle, it was that she had seen him before in the past, but only briefly. Kizashi and Mebuki had soon joined Sarada, equally surprised to find that Naruto was here.

"Hey, it's nice to see you all!" Naruto's greeting was genuinely pleasant. He had always liked Sakura's parents in spite of hardly ever being able to see them anymore, but it was hard to take his eyes off of Sarada. He couldn't help but put a younger version of Sakura beside her, working to make some comparisons. It wouldn't be the first time someone had done it to him when it had come to Bolt.

"Naruto!" Mebuki spoke first, admiring his physique and overall presence. He was always a joy to have in the rare times he had come over. Only now was she realizing just how long it had been since she had last been able to welcome him here. "It's been ages! How are you doing? How's the family?"

"I'm doing really well, and so is my family, thanks for asking."

Sakura quietly shut the door as small talk was made. The enthusiasm of her parents was contagious, something Naruto was already abundant with. Sarada stood quietly as the adults conversed, with the topic eventually going to the aroma of curry that was all over the house.

"Mom, you make curry?" Sakura sounded surprised, which surprised Naruto too.

"I borrowed the recipe from Choza Akimichi; I made a bet with his wife, that if I mastered the dish that they'd offer me further recipes." Mebuki appeared quite proud of the aroma. As thick as it was, her culinary abilities hadn't declined with age, and Sarada never held any complaints about lunch or dinnertime. "But what brings you here after such a long time?"

"I was hoping I could take Sarada out for some ramen." Naruto's face flushed with embarrassment, knowing that the timing could have been a lot better. "And believe me, what you cooked smells great. I know it's selfish of me to do this without warning, but it would mean a lot to me if I could take her out. Would it… be okay?"

It was ultimately Sakura's decision, but the respect he was giving to Mebuki and Kizashi was considerable, something Sakura was greatly appreciating. She would even go so far as to say that she was blown away with the courtesy. Mebuki and Kizashi exchanged looks, already knowing their answers. They looked back at Naruto.

"I don't see why not." Kizashi pointed a finger towards Naruto's chest. "However, I cannot let you leave in good faith without having you answer a very simple question."

Sakura and Sarada both winced, all too familiar with the games that Kizashi liked to play.

"A question? Okay, sure!" Naruto welcomed anything Kizashi had to ask.

"What does a cat say when he likes something?" Kizashi had sent his challenge, and immediately Sarada and Sakura sank a little in shame.

Purrfect, Sarada knew it already and she was willing to bet that her mother did too. Her grandfather was usually a little cleverer than this, but not by much. She quickly and quietly put her shoes on, and Sakura reached back to open the door before Kizashi could try to start a chain of D-rank jokes.

"Hmm…" Naruto was thinking hard to himself, unaccustomed to humor on this level. This was a tough one. "I think it's …mice? You know, because cats chase mice and it rhymes with nice."

Sarada reached out for Sakura's hand, the weight of such a horrible answer bearing down on her small shoulders. Sakura too was reeling inside, not only at Naruto's answer, but at how easy the real answer was.

"Ha, an excellent guess, but you're wrong: Purrfect was the answer all along!"

_'Obviously!'_ Sarada and Sakura were slowly inching out the door together, mutual expressions of shame growing worse on their faces. To their surprise Naruto had laughed at the joke.

"Wow, that's a really good one!" Naruto complimented Kizashi, who was grinning with pride alongside Mebuki.

"That's nothing, try this one—"

"Okay then!" Sakura took Naruto by the shoulder with her free hand and tugged him backwards. "The Hokage is a busy man, so we should really esca—get going, now. I'll drop Sarada off when we're done!"

In an act of mother-daughter teamwork, Sarada had shut the door before Mebuki and Kizashi could argue once Naruto was dragged out the door. Left alone, Kizashi still appeared full of pride.

"Now, how many men do you know that could outwit our very own Hokage with a joke like that!?"

"Not many, sweetheart."

"It's time to get back to work! Hehehehe!" Renewed by Naruto's visit, Kizashi and Mebuki returned to the dining room to eat and work on new material together.

* * *

Ichiraku's wasn't busy today, which was fortunate for the trio that had just arrived. Seating themselves, Sarada was between Naruto and Sakura, the former on her right, the latter on her left. Teuchi had greeted the group, and with a little small talk between old friends he then took the orders needed. Luckily for him, he already knew the bowl Naruto loved, which had been dubbed 'the usual' between the pair. Sarada had what Naruto had, and Sakura had done the same.

"I still can't believe you didn't get that one, it was so easy." Sarada looked to her right, expression skeptical. "Are you really the Hokage?"

"Sarada, be nice!" Sakura chided. Her expression quickly softened though, mimicking her daughter. "But I have to admit, Naruto …that was easy."

There was nothing to do but laugh at his own foolishness while their bowls were being prepared. "Well, I'm not exposed to that humor like you two are. It's been a long time since I've heard a good joke."

"Not that dad's always that corny, but I'm surprised you of all people didn't get that. Then again, all your humor was usually directed into pranks, not jokes."

"You guys should be happy that Kizashi's so upbeat. The difference between him and Hinata's father is like night and day," Naruto mused.

"Well, the Hyuga have their pride. Do you and Hiashi have a problem?"

"Problem? No." Naruto's attention moved to Sakura, "It's just …he's never been easy to talk to. It isn't a real problem, only that he's always been tense. Almost intimidating."

Sarada's face tightened, her eyes focusing on Naruto's expression intensely. A leader had to be fearless and strong, so it was strange to discover that the man who was known as a war hero and their beloved leader actually feared something. The aroma of the ramen was beginning to make her mouth water, yet her appetite was not solely on food. She hungered to know more while she had the chance.

"You're the Hokage, what could possibly make you feel that way that isn't just another Kage?" The young Uchiha asked, but she'd treat it as rhetorical, "Who is this Hiashi person? Bolt's grandfather?"

Naruto nodded to confirm her suspicion, going on to answer her first question without missing a beat. "Hiashi Hyuga is – well, was – the leader of the Hyuga Clan.

he's the father of my wife, who is Bolt's mother. You've seen her before, haven't you?"

Sarada shook her head, "Not often, I leave from the academy to finish my work before anything else. I'm not top of my class for nothing."

Naruto had beamed at her for her ability at first, but soon began to notice that Sarada's tone didn't express the confidence he had expected it to. Just from this short conversation he could see that she was really intelligent for her age. There was pride in her voice, yet it was simply how she spoke of her position at the top of her class that had tipped him off. His eyes wandered up to Sakura, who had met his with hers. Knowing looks were exchanged; Sakura had mentioned that Sarada didn't have many friends on the way to grab her, and even before that they had managed to talk a little about her performance at the academy.

"Hey," Naruto lowered his head and leaned in a little closer to her, "what about your friends? Don't you have people to play with after class?"

"No…well, actually," Sarada thought back to at least one person who was constantly asking her for help on assignments. Her eyes turned upward as her mind wandered to all instances related to that person. "There's this girl – ChouChou is her name. She likes to talk to me sometimes, but I think it's just because I'm the smartest in class. Probably just to ask for my work so she can copy."

"How do you know for sure? Have you spoken to her?" Naruto was familiar with Choji's daughter. Choji wasn't a cheater, and from what little he knew of Karui that didn't involve her fists against his face, she wouldn't condone it either. "It's not nice to judge people before you know them."

"…Maybe she isn't like that, but I don't see why else she'd talk to me. Not like anyone else does."

Naruto could see it on her face and hear it in her voice. The evidence was there, but she kept it buried somewhere inside of her. Sakura may have understood it too.

"Doesn't it get lonely?"

Sarada's thoughtful expression had sunk to one of surprise. Her dark eyes roamed to the Hokage, yet hadn't stayed for very long. Turning her head to face her mother, Sarada wondered if it was okay to speak. Sakura's nod of encouragement was received, prompting the Uchiha to scratch the surface of feelings she had rarely been able to openly speak of before.

"Sometimes. I get used to it …the feeling that no one could really understand me." Naruto's lip quivered, Sarada was quick to continue in order to prevent interruption. "Besides Mama, I mean. But …I thought maybe someone could understand what it was like …to be different."

She was sitting beside someone who was once an outcast. Hated for a reason he couldn't understand. Sarada was experiencing some level of being an outcast. An amusing lunch was turning out to be a little more complicated than Naruto had expected, and for Sakura herself she was glad to hear Sarada speak her mind knowing full well that she needed someone to hear her. Naruto always had a way with people's hearts. If anyone could have helped her talk some good sense into her daughter, it was him.

"People used to hate me, you know." Naruto slowly began, "I had no real friends of my own for a long time, and I had to cause trouble just so people would acknowledge me. Even if I was getting yelled that, they were noticing me, they had to with all the ruckus I made."

_'Naruto…_' Sakura bit her lip, knowing all too well how his story went. She, too, was one of the people who didn't like him, and wanted nothing more than for him to go away. She never knew if Naruto had completely resolved the feelings of the past. His smile was sad, but at the same time there was some peace to it. Naruto didn't appear to be pained by his recollection, and Sarada was hooked. She was knowing a side of the Hokage that few other children may ever have known about him, directly from his lips.

"It's a long and complicated story. The only point I want to make to you now is that you're your mother's daughter, and she's one of a kind. It's hard not to be a little different when you're the daughter of someone so great."

Naruto looked to Sakura, causing Sakura's heart to skip a beat. Reminiscing in the past may have brought a fond memory or two deep inside himself. Sakura wasn't sure what it was that Naruto was thinking at that exact moment. She was inwardly elated, yet on the outside showing mild surprise. It had been a long time since someone had looked to her with such pride and joy. The heat in her cheeks had come quickly, a smile wasn't forced but given to Naruto. Naruto was smiling already, but with her acknowledging him like that it had widened to the limit. When his eyes moved back to Sarada, Sakura could not put her emotions into words.

The tenderness of his smile and gaze combined had already done a number on her heart, but for Sarada who had no father figure around to count on the effect was likely doubled. Naruto was looking at Sarada as if she was his own child.

"You've got her genius, and that may intimidate people at first, but so what? They just need to get to know the real Sarada, not just the Sarada that can get perfect scores on all her tests. If they don't like you because you're smart, well, that's too bad for them!" Naruto raised up his left hand and balled it into a fist, patting it with his right hand. "Sometimes you may need to knock the block off of someone who won't understand that, and that's okay. Your mom had to be the one to knock some sense into me when I was younger. I'm grateful for it, and I think I'm better because of that …even if the bruises were pretty bad sometimes."

Naruto and Sarada laughed together. Sakura was forced to close her eyes, preventing Naruto from seeing her tear up a little. Regardless of Sarada's possible indifference in the beginning, warming up to Naruto had taken no time at all. With Teuchi completing their bowls, Naruto and Sakura watched Sarada together as she took her first initial dives into the wonderful taste of Ichiraku ramen. Her face lit up so quickly that Sakura had regret not having her phone on her person. The apprehension she had earlier of facing Naruto again this morning had made her forgetful, but it was Naruto proving how reliable he was by retrieving his own. The sharpness of Sarada's grin when she took that first bite was snapped quickly with his phone, much to the girl's embarrassment. Several more had been taken to mark the occasion, each featuring a little goofiness from Naruto and some of Sakura's own brand of playful aggression when he wasn't settling down so they could eat.

It had just been the three of them – from now, to the next twenty minutes. Naruto had asked Sarada questions to challenge her intellect. Sarada recited the names of each major village and the Kage that represented them, as well as the previous Kage that had come before. When it had come to the official shinobi rules, Naruto had to surrender once she had gotten the first twenty seven correct. Sakura wasn't surprised, but Sarada was eager to keep being tested. It wasn't every day you got to impress the leader of your home, and she felt undeniably good.

"Did you eat your fill?" Naruto asked once Teuchi was paid and thanked for the meal.

Sarada placed a hand to her stomach, content and stuffed beyond measure with an expression of bliss on her face. "Yeah. I can't believe I could eat so much, but I managed it somehow."

"It's normal. Ichiraku's has the best ramen in the world. Just wait until you get cravings for it, your mother's really gonna hate me!"

"As long as she wants it in moderation. Not all of us can live off of ramen alone, Naruto." Sakura quipped.

Sarada frowned, knowing that with the meal finished their time was coming to an end. "Do you really have to go?" she asked.

Naruto left his seat, as did Sarada and Sakura. All three had a great time, but with Naruto's workday still needing to be completed he would need to return to his office shortly. The man in question had knelt in front of Sarada and placed both hands on her shoulders, offering her the same smile and charm that had brought Sakura's own heart to a momentary standstill.

"Just for now, I have a lot to get done. We can do this again sometime soon, I promise."

"Do you mean it?" Sarada asked, bewildered.

"Of course. I don't go back on my word, your mother knows that too!"

Sarada looked to her mother expectantly, eased by her small nod of confirmation. Her hands had come down to rest atop Naruto's and squeeze firmly. Between the two of them, Sarada felt uplifted in a way she hadn't felt since her papa had been in the village. It was in the middle of his assurance that Naruto shrugged his shoulders, a small laugh escaping him.

"I'll walk with you." Naruto stood back up, and when Sakura's hands left his, he took them from Sarada's shoulders. "Your mother and I actually need to talk anyway."

Sakura didn't oppose it, even if Naruto was supposed to be one of the busiest people in the village. With a joyful Sarada both full and curious, Naruto and Sakura exchanged brief but amused glances at one another once Sarada had begun thinking about what she'd try the next time they could go to Ichiraku's again. Sakura was in a position to give Naruto a classic case of 'I told you so', but she resisted that urge. She had never taken Sarada to Ichiraku's because she had the greatest risk of running into Naruto there. Because of her apprehension her daughter had missed out on quite an experience, an experience with someone she should have been able to call 'uncle' instead of Lord Seventh. They shared several minutes involving the different combinations of ramen, and to Sakura's surprise she was actually engaged in the conversation at hand in spite of not being as big a ramen nut as Naruto beside her. They returned to Sakura's parents and stood outside the front door, and before Sarada entered she would turn back to Naruto.

"Thank you, Lord Seventh. And I'll remember what you said, especially this," Sarada mimicked Naruto's earlier motion, patting a balled fist with a look of confidence on her face.

"Hopefully it won't come to that …and Sarada, you can just call me Naruto, you know. Lord Seventh and Lord Hokage are nice, but what's nicer is having you recognize me for being your friend, rather than your leader."

It could be called humility. Sakura saw it as a true sign that he intended to become closer to Sarada; he wouldn't go back on his word about taking her out again, and it was something the medical specialist was excited for regardless of her participation or not.

"Okay …'Naruto'." It felt odd on the tongue, almost like it didn't belong. The truth was she wasn't used to addressing someone this important – and really great – with such a casual term. It would take getting used to, and if he kept his word as he prided himself on, she could get used to it. "Bye!"

"See you!" Naruto watched Sarada depart, and didn't turn to Sakura until he heard the shuffling of her feet fade away.

They were left alone now, with Sakura choosing to begin first.

"Naruto, I can't even tell you how much this meant to her …and to me, too. That's the most she's smiled in a long time – and what was with the whole 'beat them up' part of your conversation?" Sakura placed her hands on her hips, amused.

"Hehe, well, you're strong Sakura-chan. Sarada has your genius, so it wouldn't be too hard to believe she has your strength, too!"

"My strength? I … don't really know about that. To be honest she's probably more like her father in strength than me. I can't imagine how much she's got bottled up inside …speaking of her father," Sakura had grown quite curious in a short amount of time. Through the entire conversation he shared with Sarada, Sasuke was missing. "You never brought Sasuke-kun up to her …not even to me. Why is that?"

"One step at a time, Sakura-chan. This is just the new beginning of something great, and who knows, maybe I can get Bolt to hang out with her sometime!" The thought of their kids being close friends was always a dream of his. Ever since Hinata was pregnant with Bolt and he knew of Sakura's pregnancy, he had imagined the two playing together. "You'll want the pictures we took, right?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah, definitely." She could use a new wallpaper on her phone anyway.

"I'll send them to you tonight, then."

"Great!" The pictures were of importance, but a straight answer was owed to him. Today's events had confirmed for her that she could do this. Naruto was willing to move on, and it was on her now to prepare to do the exact same thing. Years of emotional turmoil and self-disgust were the obstacles, and right in front of her was the tool to overcome it all. Maybe, just maybe, she could change with him.

She might be able to take her life back for herself.

"About the speech …I'm definitely willing to do it with you. We can go over what we'll discuss sometime when you aren't busy, so you better make some time. Got it?" Playfulness wasn't completely lost on her. Naruto had returned old parts of her that she thought she had lost.

"Yeah, you bet I will. Train hard, and I'll see you later!" Naruto had turned to leave after one last good look at her, but didn't get far.

"Wait …what do you mean 'train hard'?"

Naruto looked over his shoulder. "The combat exercise after the speech, to spice things up. I figured we could maybe add it to the tradition – kids these days like action more than words, so if you're already doing the speech with me then we could spar." His head tilted. "Is that okay?"

Here stood Sakura Haruno – out of shape ninja who hadn't seen combat in years, much less trained anymore, with the spotlight shining directly on her.

"You never said anything about that before, Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed, knowing for a fact it was true.

"I didn't? Hm," Naruto thought back, having believed the exact opposite. "Well, I probably won't do it for a month or so, that should give you enough time to make room in your schedule, right? I can work around you."

"That isn't the point! Couldn't you get Lee to do that part?"

"I …guess I could get bushy brows." Naruto turned around, eyebrow raised keenly. "But I wanted it to be you. If you don't want to do it at all, I'll—"

"No! I'll make time."

Sakura's response had been quick and certain. Her insecurities had been the one thing keeping her from agreeing in the first place. To go from a simple addition to a speech and suddenly be thrust into a sparring match with Naruto so the kids had something else to remember the occasion by was a significant jump, and inwardly she was beating Naruto upside the head for completely forgetting to mention that he was considered an event like that. It was a good idea and one that would likely be the talk among the kids Sarada's age for a while, and the last thing she wanted to do was show just how out of shape she had become since the events of the Otsutsuki crisis. Pushing that segment onto someone else was justified, Lee was one of the few people in the village that could still give Naruto a run for his money. The reason her mind changed wasn't that she had suddenly found confidence in herself, it was that Naruto had the confidence in her to do this.

Naruto wanted it to be her.

"Oh, great!" Naruto had been a little worried, but Sakura's change of heart had stopped his spirits from drifting downward after the upward spiral it had been in for the last few hours. "I'll see you later then!"

"Bye!" Sakura waved, and Naruto had waved back. She was nervous, but on the surface she looked calm and ready.

Locked deeply into a mental playback of how she could perform against Naruto who had not been slacking these past several years in the fitness department, Sakura was completely ignorant of a pair of piercing blue eyes staring disapproving at her from a distance. They had come to rest on the back of the departing Hokage and intensified, dissatisfaction and curiosity completely overwhelming any sense of joy they might have held ten minutes prior. This young man, with an exact likeness to the Hokage in his younger years, sprinted after him.

There's no way he'd let his shitty old man get away with this.

* * *

A/N - Next chapter will fully debut Naruto's family, and as the last line implies there should be a confrontation between father and son! I didn't really like this chapter and felt like I could have done better in a lot of areas, but if I kept lingering on it I was never going to post it. Hopefully some of you liked it, cause I don't. Thanks for reading. A bit of a heads up to those fans of Hinata who may be following, I have a story just for her in the works, stay tuned :D!

-Reviews-

_Naruto Sakura Uzumaki -_ Thanks for the continued support. I'll try to continue writing and I hope you will enjoy it, even when I don't. Glad to have you following!

_Guest_ \- Keep reading if you want to know the deal :D

_Mr0cheese_ \- Very kind words, can't tell you how much they mean to me. I'm glad you found some entertainment value in the story thus far, and that you'll continue to support it as updates occur. Feels good!

Mangaka Shuzen - I'm glad I could be the first person you've read in a while, but even more glad that you enjoyed what you read. I hope I don't give up!

_HelloNaruto_ \- I considered taking challenges but I'm far too busy to dedicate as much time on any of them as I do this story. You can pm me your ideas if you'd like, it's not the first time someone's come to me about ideas. Dragonball I might be able to write, but I'd need a good plot, and other than fighting I really don't see the potential in it besides alternate realities being explored, some smut, or just making OC's to challenge the Z fighters. Unfamiliar with Sekirei. I gave up on Bleach before the Fullbringer arc ended, I got bored and from what a friend tells me Bleach isn't getting any better. Pokemon cross with Naruto? Not for me I'm afraid ^^'. Thank you very much for your compliments, I hope to have your support as time goes on!

_RedGoddessEclipse, Lord Poncho, November Ember, Starcalista, MissVenita, Cielfairy_ \- Thank you very much for the words of praise folks, you don't know how much it means to me to look back at them and know that I could make some readers happy/excited/anxious about what they read. I really do hope you'll enjoy the chapters as they come, even if I struggle with my own approval of them.

_Brooklynboy_ \- I'm glad you could appreciate the conversations so far and I'm especially glad you like the respect I give to NaruHina, even when not being a huge fan of it myself. You're too kind and I don't think I deserve the level of praise you gave me, but I value you as a reader and hope you'll never be disappointed!


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